Blood Red
by Eevee73
Summary: This is my interpretation of the history of Red and N. The time is set when they were kids (10 yrs), and travelling through the Kanto region. As always, this story doesn't tie in with the plot of the games, anime or manga, though some parts may be alike to them. I hope you like it! Please comment on how I could make this story better!
1. Chapter 1: The First Pokemon

Blood Red

Chapter 1: The first Pokémon

The rising sun cast an orange glow across the field full of rich green grass that grew up to the two boys' knees. They had both been eagerly awaiting the moment when they would each get their first Pokémon from Professor Oak, and now they were walking across the field to acquire them.

One boy had long, curly, green hair and wore a black and white ball-cap. His grass stained, beige pants reached down to his ankles, so he often stepped on the ends with his feet. On top of his long-sleeved, white shirt, a sphere lay on a chain that hung loosely around his neck.

The other boy's red eyes matched his ball-cap, which was placed atop his shaggy, black hair. He wore a silver chain that reflected black from his likewise shirt and jeans, his red vest had short, white sleeves that covered his black shirts shoulder area, but the black sleeves went down to the bottom of his palms. A gold ring rested on his index finger on top of his black, fingerless glove. An old ipod stayed in his pocket and white ear buds climbed up the back of his shirt, one of them in his ear, the other lay idle on his chest.

The two shared a smile as they approached the stone steps that led to the Professor's laboratory. The boy in red was nine months older than his friend, but he had waited until the latter's birthday to get his first Pokémon.

They were both pondering which Pokémon they would get. N, the boy in white, would secretly let Red get first pick by saying he didn't know which Pokémon he wanted; this was untrue, of course, but Red had waited so long for N. Meanwhile, Red wasn't paying any attention at all to anything or anyone around him, he was stuck in a world of daydreams imagining how he would become the Champion after he got his Pokémon, tripped on one of the stairs and fell flat on his face with his arms sprawled in front of him.

"Red!" N shouted in surprise, "Are you okay?"

"Shut up, I'm fine, "Red replied, standing up and dusting himself off. He wiped his bleeding lip on his sleeve and resumed his dreaming. When N finally snapped him out of his trance, he found himself at the door, which slid open when N tried to push it open as if to say, "I'm expensive! Don't you dare lay a finger on me, maggot!"

A moment later, the whole place was screaming, "SNOB!" as they silently walked in. There were machines everywhere that looked like they were made out of money, which Red took no time mentioning to N, who was frequently (and rather loudly) yelling, "Hello? Hello? HELLO?! IS ANYBODY HERE?!"

"Oh! Hello boys!" A voice said that was paired with the sound of shoes and rapidly descending the stairs. An elderly man wearing a lab coat beckoned them to follow him up the stairs. N and Red figured that this man was Professor Oak and followed him. The professor's shoes clacked on the hard stairs; the boys both had a mixed feeling of guilt, shame and embarrassment as they had no shoes to clack on the floor.

They followed him into a large, square room with a cylinder in the center of it that was holstering three Pokémon.

"Professor, is your favorite color blue?" Red asked.

"Why, yes it is. Though I don't know how you know that, "Oak replied looking as though he didn't really care.

"I—intuition, "Red mumbled as he looked at his surroundings. Everything, both down and upstairs shared the same, ugly, metallic blue.

"Ah, intuition. A truly wondrous thing!" The Professor said fondly.

Red was about to say something, but N speedily covered Red's mouth with his hand and spoke instead, "Yes, sir, "He said with obviously the better manners of the pair, "Where are the Pokémon if you don't mind, sir?"

"Ah, yes, yes. The Pokémon are right here, "Oak answered. He pressed a button on the cylinder and three PokéBalls ascended from within it in a triangular fashion. "First up, we have the Water Pokémon, Squirtle." He said and he picked up one of the PokéBalls and released the Pokémon within.

"I thought that Squirtle were supposed to look like turtles, "Red pointed out.

"Er, I mean, first up, we have the Fire Pokémon, Charmander, "Oak corrected himself, realizing that he grabbed the wrong PokéBall, "And, now we have Squirtle." This time, a blue turtle came out of the PokéBall and posed to attract attention.

"Aw, it's so cute!" N exclaimed with joy. He hoped that Red wouldn't choose Squirtle, and then he silently scolded himself for being selfish.

"And, last but not least, as the saying goes, we have Bulbasaur, the Grass type!" Professor Oak announced. A small, green, dinosaur looking creature with a seed on its back came out of the PokéBall. "Now's the time to choose, boys!"

"Right, Red you go first! I don't know which Pokémon I want yet, "N said as according to his plan.

Red smiled in gratitude. He knew that N wanted Squirtle, he acted so fond of it. Squirtle was going to be Red's original choice, but since N wanted it, "I choose Charmander!"

"Very good!" Oak agreed. N sighed in relief to himself. "Now for you, m'boy!"

"Right, then I'll choose Squirtle, "N cried without a moment's hesitation.

"An excellent choice!" The Professor said encouragingly, "That's the one most trainers get! You have good senses, m'boy." The compliment made N glow with pride as he looked at his friend who was smiling and nodding in agreement.

"Oh, I almost forgot, "Oak suddenly said, "You'll need these." He handed them each five PokéBalls, which they put in their pockets, "And take these too." He gave them each a red, book-like machine, "It's called a PokéDex. It will tell you what the Pokémon you're looking at is, as well as information on it; and if you scan your PokéBalls with its scanner, it will tell you what attacks your Pokémon has. It's a high-tech encyclopedia!"

"Cool!" The boys shouted simultaneously.

Suddenly, feet sped up the stairs. Their owner appeared in the room as a girl with brown hair and blue eyes. "Did you leave Bulbasaur for me, grandpa?"

"Daisy!" Oak shouted in surprise, "You're a bit late, but here's your Bulbasaur." He said gesturing to the Bulbasaur who was out of its PokéBall and looking expectantly at the professor. "And while we're at it, why don't you nickname your Pokémon!"

"I'll name her Lily after the beautiful flower!" Daisy piped up, hugging her new Bulbasaur with affection.

"I'll name Squirtle, Titanic!" N said next.

"Nah, I'll pass. Who needs nicknames anyway?" Red said with disapproval, his Charmander seemed to agree with him.

"That's alright. You should head to Viridian city if you intend to collect gym badges." Oak informed.

"Right!" Daisy replied as she dashed out the door, "Bye, grandpa!" Her voice could be heard faintly as the three people who remained stationary looked after her in surprise. Several minutes later, Red and N thanked the Professor and left.

"Hey, N, " Red said, "Wanna have a battle?"

"Battle?"

"Yeah, you know, a battle. So that we can find out more about our Pokémon."

"Hm. What do you think, Titanic?" N asked to the Squirtle he was carrying.

"_Squirtle squirt!_" Titanic exclaimed.

"That sounds good, Red. But let's do it near a Pokémon center so that, if your Charmander gets hurt, we can heal it quickly!" N announced with newfound confidence.

"That's the way to think!" Red said proudly. The two raced to a field by the Pokémon center and sent their Pokémon out in front of them.

"You go first, Red, "N said in his polite way.

"Alright, then! Charmander let's start with… uh… whaddya know, again?" Red asked himself looking at his PokeDex, "Uh, Oh yeah! Charmander, use Scratch on Titanic!"

Charmander nodded and hopped up to the Squirtle with his short legs and swatted at him lightly with his small fingers. The attack was light, but it hit Squirtle hard because the latter was also a low level.

"Oh, no! Titanic, are you okay?" N asked, but was soon reassured when Squirtle lifted itself off of the ground with a nod. "Alright then, Squirtle! Use…um… Tackle!"

Squirtle lunged his small body, head first and rammed into the opposing Charmander with all his (light as he was) weight. Charmander flew back and landed on his feet. He stumbled forward a few steps after having lost his balance.

"Charmander, use Growl!" Red commanded. Charmander let out a small roar. Titanic covered his ears as his attack fell.

"Titanic, use Tail Whip!" N shouted, also covering his ears. Squirtle shook his looped tail at Charmander and lowered the latter's Defense stat. "Now, Titanic, use Tackle!" Titanic once again dove after Charmander and hit him square in the stomach, knocking Charmander unconscious.

"Oh, no! Charmander, let's get you to the Pokémon center." Red said, picking up his orange lizard Pokémon. "I guess you were right about the Pokémon Center thing, N, "Red laughed and N did the same.

When they entered the Pokémon Center, the Nurse behind the counter said, "Hi, welcome to the Pokémon Center where-, "Then she stopped short and quit smiling, "Oh, it's you two. What is it now?"

"Please, Nurse Joy. We don't mean any trouble, "N said politely, "Our Pokémon were hurt by several wild Pokémon. We tried to take them on, but alas, our forces were too miniscule to overcome the antagonists and our creatures were soon prey to the beasts that lie before them. The two of us had only enough strength and skill to dispatch ourselves from the onslaught before becoming food in the belly of death, "He continued slyly. N had always had a way with words.

"Oh, the poor Pokémon!" Nurse Joy exclaimed pitying the two Pokémon and taking them onto two stretchers and into the room behind her. The two boys barely held back their laughs as they exited the building and sat on the brown wooden bench across from the Center.

"Nice, silver tongue!" Red cheered, "But didja really have to lie about what happened?"

"If she knew that we were just messing around, she would have written us off again."

"Yeah, I guess."

"They should be okay by now, doncha think?" N asked.

"Prob'ly. Let's go see, "Red replied. They hopped off of the bench and reentered the Center.

"Just in time, "Nurse Joy announced, "No broken bones, just a few bruises, but they're just fine now!"

"Thank you, Nurse Joy!" N said graciously.

"No problem, "She replied. The boys waved goodbye as they exited with their Pokémon in their respective PokéBalls.

It was nearing noon, and they were getting hungry.

"Hey, Red?" N peeped.

"Hm?"

"After we eat, let's pack up and go to Viridian city."

"My thoughts exactly!" Red nodded in agreement.

"Awesome! Then let's go home and eat!"

The two ran off to the woods to the east of route 1. They walked for a while until they reached a tall, strong oak tree. They climbed up to the top of it to reveal a tree house that was cloaked in oak leaves.

N sighed dreamily as he lay down on a makeshift couch, "What've we got to eat?"

"Uh, we have P,B&J, "Red replied, looking through the white cooler, "Wild Strawberries, I got some of those doughnuts from the doughnut shop, apples, Dr. Pepper (not really a food, but still), the ,uh ,chips are in the pantry-"

"How about sandwiches and strawberries?"

"Sounds good. Here, catch, "Red threw N a Dr. Pepper.

"Hey, we have to give Titanic and Charmander the tour!" N offered.

"Right, Charmander, come out. I want to show you something, "Red said as he summoned his Pokémon from its PokéBall and N did the same to his Squirtle. They came out, and tried not to look disappointed by their surroundings.

"Welcome home, guys!" N exclaimed while sipping his soda. It was a small house made up completely of tightly placed planks of wood. It was composed of two rooms: the main room, which held the couch that was made of moss on top of a large, long log that had a forth cut out of it to make room for sitting, the large cooler that served as a fridge, a small crate that was the pantry, and a few trinkets of sentimental value. And the second room was far smaller. It had two small but comfortable pallet beds made out of Moss, soft grass and willow vines.

The two Pokémon looked at each other, sharing an unimpressed look.

"Eat up, you three, "Red said to Charmander, Titanic and N, "We have Viridian City to go to!"


	2. Chapter 2: Viridian Skies

Chapter 2: Viridian Skies

"You know, I heard that in Unova, all of the bridges are humongous!" N exclaimed factually as they crossed the bridge over the small stream. N's long, green hair swung to and fro behind him; the Squirtle perched on his head was wearing his black and white hat on its tail.

"Really?" Red replied, "Who told ya' that?"

"I overheard some kids talking about it by the ocean."

"Well, I guess that we'll just have to go there and see for ourselves. Once we're done with Kanto, of course."

"Right!" N agreed. They were walking through Route 1, on the way to Viridian City, when suddenly, "_Ratt! Ratt Rattata!_" A voice shouted from the tall, uncut grass. N jumped when he heard the noise, but Red had already sent out his Charmander and was holding a spare PokéBall in his hand.

A purple rat Pokémon called Rattata jumped out of its cover to attack Charmander with a Quick Attack.

"Charmander, dodge and use Ember attack!" Red shouted, thoroughly pumped full of excitement as he was about to catch his first Pokémon. Charmander quickly jumped over the rat and let loose tiny flames from its mouth to hit the Rattata in the back. The Rattata struggled to stand up again, but Red had already thrown a PokéBall with a (somewhat embarrassing for N) battle cry.

The PokéBall mercilessly enclosed around the small Pokémon, sucking it into its lonely depths. The PokéBall shook a few times as the Rattata tried to escape, but Rattata was too weak to jump out for a counter attack. The PokéBall stopped shaking, indicating that Rattata was caught.

Red sped over to the Ball and picked it up saying, "Look, N! I've made my first catch!" N was grinning and applauding Red's small feat, "Good job, Charmander! You too, Red, "N encouraged.

"Thanks! That was great, Charmander! Take a good rest, "Red said, returning his first Pokémon to its Ball. "Dude, that was _awesome_!" Red exclaimed with pride, "You gotta catch up, I've already got two Pokémon! You can't possibly beat the Viridian City Gym Leader with just Titanic, "He advised.

"You think?" N asked testily, "I bet me and Titanic could take you on anyway. Not that I'm looking for a battle, or anything. We don't have any healing items, so let's go to Viridian City's Pokémon Center and heal our Pokémon. Rattata is in pretty bad shape."

"Yeah, you're right, "Red agreed, "But if we run into another Pokémon, I'll let you catch it."

"Thanks. Hey, do you think that Daisy girl already beat the Gym Leader?"

"Maybe, "Then he paused, "Nah, I doubt it. That pansy couldn't hurt a Pichu that was using Electric type attacks, much less beat a Gym Leader."

"Yeah, I guess you're right. At least Titanic agrees with you!" N laughed in reply as his Squirtle nodded in agreement with Red's comment.

"Look, Viridian City!" Red shouted to his comrade. Buildings were poking their tops over the trees as if to try and get a glimpse of the sea that swelled just past Pallet Town. They ran through the small remainder of route 1 to find themselves in the posh city of Viridian.

As they walked down the road made of pink bricks, the Gym beckoned to Red with a welcoming voice, but they made their way to the Pokémon center at the north side of the town.

Nurse Joy and her Chansey welcomed them as they entered her Center. "Hello, "She said, "Are you two trainers?"

"Yes, Ma'am, "N replied, "Could you please heal our Pokémon?"

"Certainly! I'll just take your Pokémon, "She said as she took the two PokéBalls and the Squirtle. N had decided to keep Titanic outside of its PokéBall because he decided it would be more fun that way, but he put Titanic in its Ball to be healed. The nurse took the Pokémon to the machine next to her and placed the PokéBalls in the spherical slots. A red light glowed on each of the PokéBalls as they were healed.

"Here are your Pokémon!" Nurse Joy said as she handed the two boys their Pokémon.

"Thank you, "N said politely.

"You're very-wait. Don't I know you from somewhere? Are you two by any chance from Pallet town?" She asked.

The two boys looked at each other, "Um. Yeah, we are, "Red replied.

"Oh, do you know the Nurse Joy there? She mentioned two boys and by her descriptions, they sounded a lot like the two of you."

"Um… gotta go. Gym Leader-er-Pokémon-catch…uh, "Red stuttered as the two boys raced out the door to avoid her question.

"Now that's odd, "Nurse Joy said to her Chansey as they left.

"That was _way_ too close for my taste, "N said once they were out of earshot.

"Apparently our fame stretches beyond the reaches of the small Pallet town, "Red chimed.

"You're starting to sound like me with your fancy words, "N informed.

"Hey, I learned from the best."

"Oh, yeah, Fine display of mastery back there. Really smooth, "Sarcasm flowed through N's words as he spoke.

"I was good, wasn't I?"

"I was being sarcastic, you derp!"

"I know, I know. Let's get to the gym. I'm ecstatic about beating it!"

"Yeah. I wonder what type of Pokémon the Leader uses, "N thought out loud.

"Who cares? I could beat this Gym Leader in my sleep if I wanted to!"

"But you haven't even met the Leader yet!"

"That doesn't matter, all that matters is that I'm gonna walk away from this fight with a badge in my hand!"

"If you say so."

"Have a little faith in you best friend, will ya'?" Red said as they walked into the gym. "Gym Leader, I challenge thee!" He exclaimed to no one in particular. They were standing on a large battlefield with bleachers on either side; the walls were all a light pink.

"You're challenging the Gym Leader, huh?" A voice asked from behind them."

The girl with long, pink hair surprised them a little when she spoke, but Red replied, "That's right."

"Well, you've found her!"

"You're the Leader?" He asked in surprise.

"Yes, and I accept your challenge!"

"Awesome, then let's get started!"

"Sounds good!" She agreed, "My name is Nymphia, and this is the referee, Darrel."

"Nice to meetcha! I'm Red and this is my friend N!"

"And now that we're all introduced, let's get this battle started!" Nymphia said excitedly.

"Right!" Red replied. The two competitors ran over to their places, Darrel went to his place beside the battlefield and N went and sat on a second row of bleachers with Titanic in his arms.

"This will be a two-on-two match between Gym Leader, Nymphia, and Challenger, Red. Only the challenger may substitute Pokémon. Begin!" Darrel shouted from the sidelines.

"Rattata, you're up first!" Red shouted, sending out his small rat Pokémon.

"Jigglypuff, let's win this match!" Nymphia shouted as she sent out a circular, pink Pokémon with blue eyes. Red pulled out his PokéDex and scanned Jigglypuff with its scanner, "Jigglypuff, the balloon Pokémon. Jigglypuff's vocal chords can adjust the wavelengths of its voice. This Pokémon uses this ability to sing at precisely the right wavelength to make its foes most drowsy."

"Be careful of its song, Rattata!" Red warned his Pokémon.

"We'll start this off with Gyro Ball!" Jigglypuff's trainer said. Jigglypuff's arms turned to hard metal. It spun in a tight circle with its arms facing out and charged after Rattata in a flash.

"Rattata, use Quick Attack to dodge!" Red commanded _its fast_ he thought. White light surrounded Rattata as he narrowly dodged the swift attack.

"Jigglypuff, Body Slam!" Jigglypuff hit the floor with its oval-shaped feet and ricocheted off of it and slammed into Rattata.

"Rattata, Bite it!" With Jigglypuff on top of Rattata, not a lot of accuracy was needed to land a hit with Bite. Jigglypuff jumped off of Rattata and flung it off its arm.

"And now, for our strongest attack: Jigglypuff, use Fairywind!" Nymphia shouted. Red was surprised, he had never heard of the attack before.

Jigglypuff drew in a deep breath and spit out a silver wind at Rattata, knocking it out.

"Red, you probably haven't heard of Fairy Type Pokémon. I guess that just makes you at more of a disadvantage., "Nymphia taunted.

"I don't need an advantage to win! Charmander, go get 'em!" Red shouted as he summoned Charmander from his small, red and white PokéBall. His persistence and courage in himself surprised her, but she wondered if it was courage, or good, old-fashioned over-confidence.

"Second round, begin!" Darrel announced.

"Charmander, finish this quick with Ember!" Red commanded. Charmander jumped in the air and spit small embers at Jigglypuff. The latter was hit critically as well as being inflicted with a burn. It only took a Scratch or two to knock it out. "Good job, Charmander! Keep it up!"

"You were wonderful, Jigglypuff. Take a good rest and let your friend take over, "The leader whispered as she returned her unconscious Pokémon to its PokéBall.

_Fairy type_ Red thought _I've never heard of such a thing. No I can't let this get the best of me, I'm gonna win no matter what!_

"Marill let's win this match!" She sent out a second spherical Pokémon, but this one was blue with a long tail. Red looked up "Marill" on his PokéDex as well, "No data. Some Pokémon aren't registered on this PokéDex yet."

"Crap, "Red said aloud to himself, "It's blue, so I guess it's a water type, assuming it's a duel-type Pokémon, but it's definitely a Fairy type, "He concluded.

"Marill, lead with Water Gun!" Marill spewed water from its mouth, but Charmander dodged it with graceful ease. Red was glad he had chosen Charmander and not Squirtle, N and Titanic seemed perfect together for one thing, and for another, Charmander was a far better battler than Titanic was. Even though Charmander lost its first battle to Titanic, the Squirtle lacked a certain charisma for battling when compared to Charmander.

"I was right, it is a Water Type, "Red realized, "Well this changes things!"

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Will Red overcome the Fairy Type Gym Leader Nymphia, or will she defeat him and his hard working Pokémon? Find out in: Blood Red Chapter 3**


	3. Chapter 3: N's Heart

**TO BE CONTINUED**

**Will Red overcome the Fairy Type Gym Leader Nymphia, or will she defeat him and his hard working Pokémon? Find out in: Blood Red Chapter 3**

Chapter 3: N's Heart

"Marill, use Bubble!" The pink-haired Gym Leader shouted to her small, blue Pokémon. The Marill jumped up in the air right above Red's Charmander and let loose a flurry of bubbles from its mouth to hit the lizard on the head.

"Charmander! Hang in there!" Red encouraged, but there wasn't a strong ledge for Charmander to hang on to and he was falling into the pit of unconsciousness.

"Marill, finish this off with Moon Blast!" Marill's tail started glowing a bright white; it then swung it to release a sphere of light that was shooting towards the unguarded Charmander.

"Charmander, get out of there!" Red commanded. Charmander jumped, but far too late. The Moon Blast hit him in the stomach and knocked him out.

"The victory goes to Gym Leader Nymphia, "Darrel droned as if this wasn't an unexpected turnout. Red stared with his mouth gaping at his last, unconscious Pokémon. "I… I lost…" He whispered to himself _I can't believe it! We would've won if I'd taken the time to train Rattata instead of rushing here like a maniac_ he thought. N was surprised as well; he thought that at the last second, Red would think up a brilliant strategy that would win the match. But he knew one thing for sure, he told that one thing to Red as they left the building without a Gym Badge, "Hey, Red? I don't think I want to do Gym Battles. It's not that I'm afraid I'll lose or anything like that. It's just that… when you were battling, I heard the inner voice of her Jigglypuff. She was saying that she thought her trainer was an arrogant fool that didn't value her as much as Marill. You know. Favoritism."

Red looked up at N as he spoke. He wasn't surprised at N. N had always had a gentle heart towards Pokémon. He could hear their inner voices. Red didn't know what that meant, and N had tried to explain it to him many times, but Red remained ignorant of the thing that kept N kind instead of being…well, Red.

_It must be torture _Red thought_ to be able to hear Pokémon's true voices even when what you're hearing is something terrible or sad._

N looked at Red with his mysterious, blue eyes and said, "That's why I hate trainers like this. They think too much of themselves and not of their Pokémon. You know, sometimes I wonder if Pokémon are better than humans. Pokémon only seem to do evil things if they've been influenced by evil people."

"Yeah, "Red agreed shortly. This statement was put on his conscience. He needed to pay more attention to his Pokémon; he certainly didn't want N to end up hating him. His friend was young, but he spoke very deeply and a lot of thought and meaning went into his words. He didn't just ramble without meaning like Red often did.

"We have to stop these evil people…that is, when we find them, "N sounded extremely confident in his words.

"I agree. Let's both get stronger for our Pokémon and for the Pokémon everywhere."

So they made an oath then and there to protect Pokémon, no matter what condition they were in or when it was and no matter what problems they had to deal with.

They traveled back into Route 1 with their heads held high to train their Pokémon. Red with his Rattata and N with his Squirtle (granted, the only Pokémon he had).

"When are you going to catch more Pokémon, N?" Red asked his blue-eyed friend.

"Dunno, why d'you gotta know?"

"Well, you can't protect the earth with just one Squirtle, "Red pointed out.

"I only need an army of one, "N replied, "It only takes one man to change the world forever. It's happened before, and it can happen again."

Red stared at his friend with large eyes and said, "What the heck are you talking about?!"

N didn't reply, but kept looking ahead. After a while, he did respond, "I have only one condition about wild Pokémon we train our Pokémon against."

"Let's hear 'em."

"We either heal them at the Pokémon Center and take them back, or capture them and then heal them."

"Should be easy enough, "Red said.

"Alright, then you should probably be training your Rattata against the Spearow that's coming to take him as its prey and eat him."

"WHAT? Rattata, use Bite!" Red commanded quickly.

'If you train Rattata enough, "N informed as the small rat fought off the bird, "It will learn Super Fang. That's a Normal type move, and should be good against the leader."

"Thanks for the-Tackle-advice, buddy ol' pal."

"Er…no prob…buddy ol' pal…"

Suddenly, Rattata erupted into flames and it charged at the oncoming Spearow.

"Wow, Rattata! What are you doing?"

"How can you not know that your Rattata has the attack Flame Wheel?!" N screeched into Red's ear.

"Well, uh, "Red stammered, scratching his head, "I kinda thought that his only moves were Bite, Tackle and Quick attack…"

"What, you didn't look it up on the PokéDex?"

"Er, no, not really. See, all the Rattata at this level know pretty much the same moves: Bite, Tackle and Growl, and sometimes Quick Attack."

"That's true, but Flame Wheel is an egg move. That means that his father had be a Rapidash, Ponyta, Arcanine or a Growlithe that knew Flame Wheel also. That would've probably been very _useful_ information during your Gym Battle, "N informed his red-eyed friend. N looked at Rattata and said, "For instance, this Rattata's father was an Arcanine that knew Flame Wheel."

"Really? How d'you know?"

"He told me, "N answered with a smile.

"That's cool! Was your father an Arcanine, Rattata?"

Rattata smiled and nodded in reply. "You truly have a wonderful gift, N, "Red complimented.

"Oh, it was nothing, "N said modestly.

Rattata seemed very proud of himself for taking down the Spearow with an unknown attack.

"Well, aren't you gonna catch the Spearow?" N asked.

"Oh, right. Go, PokéBall!" The Spearow fought tirelessly to escape the PokéBall, but his attacks were too meager and he lost the battle. "Yes, I caught a Spearow! N didja see me?"

"Hmm, "N said to himself, obviously in deep thought.

"What is it?" Red looked concerned.

"Hm?" N asked out of habit as he snapped from his trance, "Oh, it's nothing."

"Um…ok, "Red said feeling a tad left out of the brainstorm.

"Hey, we should go heal our Pokémon now."

"Yeah, you're right…as usual."

N laughed and said, "You know, you're right sometimes too." So they walked back up the dirt road, into Viridian City with the thought of victory at the gym in their minds.


	4. Chapter 4: Queen of the Faries

**Author's Note**

**-Don't forget to check out my other story: The Story of Paul: Sinnoh**

** -It's not as well written as this one is, but I'm working on that right now!**

Chapter 3: Queen of the Fairies

"Jigglypuff, let's win this!" Nymphia said. Red has gone back to the Viridian Gym for a rematch after losing the last time.

"Rattata, come forth!" Red shouted, sending out his small, but powerful Pokémon.

"So you're using the same Pokémon? I don't know if that was the best choice."

"You're right, I am using the same Pokémon. But so are you, and this time, I'm gonna win! Rattata, use Quick Attack!"

"Jigglypuff, ascend!" Jigglypuff's body blew up like the balloon Pokémon it was and it floated about ten feet off the ground.

"Jump!" Rattata jumped off the ground and hit Jigglypuff in the face. "Bite, "Red commanded, not giving Nymphia enough time to even think of a next move. Rattata's fangs chomped down on Jigglypuff's arm.

"Now, Flame Wheel!" Rattata was surrounded in flames and it dove for Jigglypuff. The latter fell to the ground, unconscious.

"B-b-b-but… how?" Nymphia stammered as she returned her Pokémon to its PokéBall. "No matter, Marill can do the job. Marill, let's win this match!"

"Rattata, great job! Really excellent! Come back now!" Red complimented, "Charmander, come forth!" N had figured that Red needed something cool to say when he sent out his Pokémon, so he thought of the phrase "come forth" and that's what Red used.

"A Fire type Pokémon against my Water type Marill? You really don't know anything, "The Leader immaturely taunted. Red didn't let it get to him, like normal, but he thought of a clever response, "All I need, "He looked at N, "Is an army of one! Charmander, Smokescreen!" Charmander spit a cloud of black fog into the battlefield in front of him. Red's commands were muffled and neither Nymphia, nor her blue Pokémon knew what was coming for them.

Blue and purple energy shot out at Marill like a cannon. But it wasn't from just one direction, Charmander used the attack, then jumped to a new place and used it again. Dragon Rage wasn't a particularly strong move, but it wasn't being used to knock out the opponent. Just to confuse it.

"Argh! Marill, use Water Gun and spin!" Marill got on its toes and spun like a top while water was constantly springing from its mouth. The water cleared the smoke as well as hitting Charmander. "Char! "Was heard in the distance from Charmander as he was hit with the super-effective attack.

"Charmander! You all right?" Red asked concernedly.

"Char! Char Charmander!" Charmander replied standing up.

_Charmander has a lot of faith in Red_ N thought_ I wonder if Red shares that same amount of faith with his Pokémon?_

"Oh, no. We won't let you get that far! Marill, Hydro Pump!" Nymphia laughed. Marill's body was outlined in blue and she formed a small, blue portal. A jet of water erupted from the portal and hit Charmander powerfully.

_Oh no, Red! Charmander!_ N thought, starting to get worried. Red hadn't yet won a battle against another trainer.

"Charmander! Can you get up?" Red asked. Charmander slowly switched to a kneeling position and nodded. "Alright, then. Charmander, use Dragon Rage!" Charmander spit a Dragon Rage out of his mouth with a look of determination in his eyes.

The attack was so powerful, that it knocked Marill off of its feet and slammed into the wall, cracking its surface.

"Marill, no!" Nymphia shouted, but her Pokémon could not hear her. Marill had been knocked unconscious by the Dragon Rage.

"_YEAH!_" Red screeched, "You did it, Charmander! That was _amazing_! You're awesome! Ahem, I think that we deserve a gym badge for our actions!" Red said to the defeated leader (The latter couldn't hear him over her own sobbing, so Darrel came to Red and gave him his badge). "Here you are! The glitter Badge!" Darrel said, handing over his well-earned badge. It was pink with gold rims and was shaped like two fairy wings (Imagine the right side of Tinker Bell's wings).

"Yeah! We got the Glitter badge!" Red shouted excitedly, "Man, what a pansy name…" He said, rather disappointed.

"Red, have some manners, "N whispered in Red's ear.

"AH!" Red shouted in surprise of N, who had his chin resting over Red's shoulder, looking at the badge that was now in a rectangular case.

"Good job, "N praised, "All three of you did very well."

"Thanks."

"Shut up!" Nymphia shouted from across the room.

"What?" N asked.

Nymphia shouted, "Y-you must've cheated or something! Rookie's like you never beat me!"

"Well, somebody's a sore loser, "N replied smoothly, "You should know that your Pokémon don't think highly of you at all. In fact, they are very jealous of Red's Pokémon for being with such a fantastic trainer. Just something to think about. Let's go, Red"

"Yeah, 'k, "Red replied, obediently following behind his friend out the door. "You know, I have no idea why a cool guy like you would hang out with someone as dumb and lame as me."

"You think I'm cool?" N asked, although he didn't deny Red's being an idiot, he did protest against Red calling himself lame.

"Totally, "Red replied as they walked to the Pokémon center.


	5. Chapter 5: Viridian Breeding Farm

**Chapter 5: Viridian Breeding Farm**

** Author's Note**

**-Please, check out my other story, 'The Story of Paul: Sinnoh'**

"You really should expand your team, N, "Red informed to N as they walked towards Viridian Forest.

"I know, "N replied, although he didn't really think that he did need more.

"Hey! You two!" A voice shouted to their right.

"Hey to you too, "Red replied.

"Can we help you in any way, shape or fashion?" N asked.

"Sure can! See, I'm working on becoming a Pokémon Trainer Overlord! Will you help me?"

"What's an overlord trainer?" Red questioned.

"Basically it just means that I can't be defeated in a Pokémon battle, "The stranger replied.

"Red here would be delighted!" N said, pushing Red in front of him.

"Alright, greeny! I'll take on you next!" The person exclaimed.

"You must be referring to my hair color, "N concluded, "My given name is Natural Harmonia, but you can call me N."

"I'm Sharky, pleased ta' meetcha and all that. Let's get to battling!" Sharky said, clearly excited.

"I'll serve as referee for this match, "N stated.

"Sounds good!" Red agreed.

"This will be a one-on-one match between Trainer Sharky, and Trainer Red! Begin!" N shouted.

Sharky ran to the right of N and sent out his Pokémon saying, "Go, Vulpix!"

"Spearow, come forth!" Red said, thoroughly excited about using his new Pokémon.

"Vulpix, use Will-o-wisp!" Sharky commanded. Vulpix shot purple and blue embers out towards Spearow by swinging its six tails.

"Ascend!" Red said shortly. Spearow flew high in the air, dodging the status inflicting move. "Now use Faint Attack!" Spearow dove at Vulpix from the left side, Vulpix attacked Spearow with Ember, but Spearow had disappeared and reappeared at Vulpix's right side, dealing a massive hit.

"Confuse Ray, go!" Sharky shouted. Vulpix's eyes glowed purple. Spearow looked straight into their eerie light; Spearow's eyes turned red, showing that he was confused.

"Will-o-wisp!" Vulpix once again used Will-o-wisp, but this time, the attack hit Spearow. Spearow was now confused with a burn.

"Come on, Spearow! Snap out of it!" Red pleaded.

"Vulpix, Ember!" Vulpix shot embers from its orange glowing mouth and hit Spearow with the tiny, yet powerful flames. Spearow was released from confusion, but still had the burn and had been hit by Ember.

"This match is over!" N declared.

"What? But I haven't knocked out Red's Pokémon yet!" Sharky complained.

"No, he's right. You've won. We wouldn't want our Pokémon to be injured any further. You fought well; both of you. You have a very good strategy, "Red praised.

"Thank you! Here, take this Potion. You can use it to heal your Spearow, "Sharky handed over a purple spraybottle.

"Thanks, Sharky, "Red thanked as he sprayed the Potion on his Spearow, then gave it back to Sharky, who sprayed the rest on his Vulpix before putting it back in his bag.

"No problem."

"Hey, where did you get a Vulpix?" N asked.

"Huh? I got it as an egg from the Viridian Breeding Farm, "Sharky replied factually.

"Oh. Would you mind pointing us in its direction? I'm rather intrigued."

"Sure, it's just over there. Follow the little dirt path for a while, and BOOM there it is. You can't miss it!"

"Thank you very much. I'm afraid we must be going now, so if you'll excuse us…" N said, and with that he turned and walked in the direction Sharky had shown him. As they walked down the road, they heard Sharky's distant voice calling, "Hey! But we were going to have a Pokémon battle!"

"Oh, what a shame. I forgot, "N said quietly to Red.

They trudged along the dirt road. Long grass and thick brambles grew on either side of them. Vines crawled up almost every tree. "I can see why they decided to make their farm here, "N said, "It's like a Pokémon haven."

"It is kinda pretty, isn't it?" Red said.

"Yes." Some Bug type Pokémon chirped happily, singing in harmony with the Flying types perched in the trees. It smelled heavenly of berries, freshly cut hay, sweet grass and honey. "Stop, "N said, holding his arm in front of Red's path to stop him. A few Caterpie and Weedle crossed horizontally across the path the two ten-year old boys were taking. "Let them pass, "N explained.

"Oh… r-right!" Red understood. The Pokémon crossed the path; the last one nodded its gratitude, N nodded back and the two boys continued walking.

_How did N know that those tiny Pokémon were there? _Red wondered _they're so small and there's a lot of tall grass on this road. Whatever._ "Look, N, "Red now spoke aloud, "You think that's it?" He asked, pointing at a large facility.

"Based on description…yes, "N replied. The Viridian Breeding Farm had several large pens, each with many different kinds of Pokémon in them. There were also cylinder-shaped warehouses and a small, two-story house, that N assumed to be the main house. "Well, I suppose we had better go say hello, then."

"Uh… right!" Red agreed. They opened the gate to the wooden fence that surrounded the whole place.

"Why put this here? It doesn't keep anything in or out, "Red wondered out loud.

"It's there as a warning sign to help people like you to know what property _is_ theirs and what property _isn't_!" A boy of about the age of seven shouted, who had just appeared from behind a large hay bale, pointing a pitchfork at them. The latter was an attempt at intimidation, but N swatted it to the side by hitting its shaft with his index finger.

"Have no fear, sir, "N proclaimed to the awestruck boy before them, "We aren't here to hurt you or your Pokémon."

"Then why are you here?" The boy asked.

"For fun, "N replied flatly, "Please show it to us. Please show us some fun."

"You mean you wanna play with me?" The boy asked, holding his fists under his chin with anticipation and smiling widely. His brown eyes got bigger and bigger, their color beautifully in harmony with his dark-cream (Or extremely light brown. Take it as you like)colored hair. N gasped, seemingly with horror and turned away briskly with his fingers spread across his forehead, saying, "Red. You take care of this. You know of…my weakness."

"Your…weakness?" The boy asked, placing his pointer finger on his chin as though he was deeply intruiged.

"He means he's a sucker for-, "But that was as far as Red got, for N had turned around and was clenching his hand over Red's mouth fiercely.

"I'm Akatsuki and I'm seven years old since three days ago!" The boy announced proudly, "What're your names?"

"I'm N, and this is Red, "N said (still covering Red's mouth), "Akatsuki-_chan_, where are your parents? We came to see the farm."

"They're this way!" Akatsuki said, waving them to follow him as he ran away towards the house, "Follow me!" And they did so, N finally releasing Red and following behind the adorable little boy quickly. He opened the door to the house to reveal a breath taking (in a good way) smell coming from the kitchen. N and Red both took a relaxing breath as they smelled the food cooking.

_What's that smell, N? It's wonderful!_ Red thought, looking at N.

"I have no idea, but you're right!" N agreed, apparently reading Red's mind through his eyes.

"Mommy!" Akatsuki shouted while running into the kitchen, "We have guests!"

"Oh?" A voice responded, "Akatsuki! Is it Sharky?"

"Nope!" Akatsuki responded, "They came to see the farm!"

"Oh?" Akatsuki's mother came out of her hiding place. Her brown hair was in a bun and her bangs carelessly swept to the side. She looked pregnant, but N didn't want to guess on the matter. "Hello, boys. I'm Tara Takahashi, but just call me Tara. My husband's away, but he'll be back tomorrow."

"Hello, ma'am, "N said, "My name is Natural Harmonia Gropius, but call me N, if you please."

"Hi, "Red saluted, "Name's Red." N looked at Red as if trying to send a message across telepathically. Red blinked twice in confusion, even though he knew what N was trying to say, creating an awkward, telepathic war.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance, "Tara said with a smile, "Oh, it's getting dark. If you like you can stay the night."

"Thanks, we'd love-"Red started, but once again, N covered his mouth and stole his reply.

"Thank you, but we wouldn't want to be a bother."

"Oh, it's no bother. I'd love to have you boys stay!"

"That'd be great!" Red announced, breaking free of N's grasp.

"Well, brilliant! Akatsuki, please show them to their room."

"Right, "Akatsuki said, "Follow me, guys!" Red and N followed Akatsuki upstairs and into a room, "This is the guest room. See? There are two beds! One for Red, and one for N!"

"Thank you, Akatsuki-_chan_, "N thanked.

"Noooooo problem!" Akatsuki left the room with a smile. He closed the door and Red said, "Ya' know, you're so good with kids."

"Well, we _are_ both kids ourselves."

"I guess that's true. But you know what I mean."

"Yeah. I don't know. I just am, "N answered.

"That makes sense… I guess." Red sat on one of the beds and thought. About an hour later, they were called downstairs for dinner. It wasn't quiet or awkward like Red had expected, but rather cheery. The food was the best either of the boys had ever tasted, and left a good memory on their minds as they slept.

N awoke early in the morning because Akatsuki had jumped on him and continued to do so, Red woke up because of N's loud scream and their Pokémon woke up because of these things mixed together.

"Get up, get up, Natural!"

"Call me N. Please!" N replied.

"Get up! We have to show you around today!"

"Akatsuki-_chan_, I know you're excited..., "N said, rubbing his eye, "But do we really have to get up this early?" He asked, pointing at the clock that read "6:00 AM".

"Yup!" Akatsuki replied, running over to jump on Red. N grabbed Akatsuki by the back of his shirt.

"I wouldn't do that…, "N warned, "He's not as easy-going as I am in the morning." He pointed to how Red had his face still slammed into his pillow to try and drown out the light and noise.

"We'll meet you downstairs in a minute. I'll wake him up."

"Ok!" Akatsuki said in his happy voice. Akatsuki left the room and went downstairs. A few minutes later, N came downstairs with a Red trailing behind him with his eyes shut and hands carelessly behind his head. "Aw, man…Why d'you always wake me up so early?"

"Because if I don't, you'll sleep until noon, "N replied.

"N, you're so cool!" Akatsuki exclaimed happily.

"Huh?" N looked at Akatsuki in surprise (clearly blushing), "Um…."

"He means thanks, "Red assumed.

"Here's your breakfast, boys, "Tara said, handing them both a plate with two pancakes on each of them.

"Thank you so much, miss Tara, "N thanked.

"No Problem, N. When you're finished, I'll show you around."

Suddenly, a man entered the room exclaiming, "I'm back, Tara!"

"Daddy!" Akatsuki said, happily, tackle-hugging his father who, in turn, hugged him back.

"Welcome home, Sorin!" Tara welcomed.

"Good to be home. Huh?" He said, noticing the guests, "Looks like we have some newbies today! Guests are always welcome here!"

"I was just about to show them around the farm, "Tara informed her husband.

"I can do it, if you like, "Sorin offered.

"That'd be great, Sorin!"

"Ok, then follow me, you two!" Sorin commanded.

"Right, "They replied simultaneously, standing up.

"Wait!" Akatsuki shouted. The three turned around, "N, let's have a Pokémon battle!"

"Huh? Uh…Sorry but I don't battle." N replied awkwardly, "But Red would be happy to battle you."

"Actually, I'd kinda like to see the farm, "Red replied flatly.

"He'll battle with you later, "N informed, "By the way…What Pokémon do you have?"

"I have the cutest Pokémon of all!"

"And what is that?" N asked.

"Eevee, of course!"

"Oh? I've never befriended an Eevee before. Can I see it?" N asked, now intrigued.

"Sure, Eevee-_chan_, come out and _be cute_!" Akatsuki shouted, sending a small, brown, foxlike Pokémon.

"Wow, it's so cute!" N said.

"Yeah, I guess, "Red agreed.

"Nice to meet you, Eevee!"

"Um, I don't mean to interrupt, but don't we have a tour to get to?" Sorin asked.

"Oh, right. Sorry, sir, "N apologized.

"It's no problem. And please, call me Sorin! Now, follow me!"

** To Be Continued**


	6. Chapter 6: Are You My Mother?

**Author's Note**

** -Please make sure you check out my other book, The Story of Paul: Sinnoh!**

** -For those of you who haven't read the Dr. Seuss book 'Are You My Mother?', shame on you! Anyway, this chapter's title is based on that. See if you can't figure out why this chapter is called that. If you think you know, tell me!**

** Chapter 6: Are You My Mother?**

"Now, follow me!" Sorin declared, exiting the house with N and Red following him. "When we give tours, we usually have larger groups, but oh, well."

"What Pokémon are these?" Red asked, pointing to a few Pokémon of the same species, roaming around in a large pen.

"Those are called Rapidash, Red. We raise them for racing. They're usually out playing in the pasture, but the grass is being mowed right now by a couple of our high school volunteers."

"They're beautiful, "N admired, "Hello, my friends." He said, stroking the soft nose of the Rapidash that had just come to see him.

"They love racing, "Sorin informed.

"I can imagine that they would!" Red exclaimed, "The PokéDex says that 'It can gallop at a top speed of 150 miles per hour. It can race as fast as a bullet train while ablaze.'

"That's right, Red. And over here, in this warehouse, we have the egg farm."

"Egg farm?" N asked.

"Yes, Pokémon eggs. We keep them here until they hatch." Sorin opened the large Iron door to reveal rows of eggs, all lined up.

"Wow. Where are their parents?" N asked.

"All of the mothers are somewhere in this building, but there are only three fathers. They're all Ditto, so they can be fathers or mothers."

"Interesting, "N thought out loud.

"Wait. I don't get it, "Red said.

"Allow me to shed light on the subject, "N said. He bent over and whispered something in his ear.

"_WHAT? WHAY WOULD YOU TELL ME THAT_!?" Red asked angrily when N finished whispering.

"Because you asked, Red, "N replied. "I can't help but notice, "He said, changing the subject so fast, that Red couldn't reply, " that that egg over there is alone and has no mother tending to it."

"You have a good eye, N. That Pokémon's mother abandoned it."

"That's terrible, "N said sympathetically.

"Yes, and furthermore, we don't even know what kind of Pokémon it is. Normally we would be able to tell by the pattern, but this one's just… well, pink, "Sorin said. "If we knew what it was, we would know how to treat it."

"How sad, "N said, walking over to it, "May I?"

"Of course, "Sorin replied. N picked up the egg. He could hear a tiny heart beating inside of it and soft, quiet breathing. "Hmm, "N said, thinking. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the egg, "I think…."

"You know what it is?" Sorin asked excitedly.

"No."

"Oh, "Sorin said, disappointment flooding his voice.

"This Pokémon, "N started, "Needs a room alone. One without anyone else in it."

"Ok. I can do that. Bring the egg and follow me!" Sorin didn't know why he trusted this boy. No one else that had toured the egg farm had ever noticed the egg. After all, it was so boring in outward appearance; the other eggs all had spots or jagged lines or several different colors… but this one was just a pale, solid, pink. They followed Sorin into a room. It was dark, and had no one in it. "This is where we take wild Pokémon we sometimes find that are injured. It's empty right now, so I guess that it can stay here for the time being."

"Thank you very much, but I'm afraid I must ask something more of you."

"What's that, m'boy?" Sorin asked.

"Please leave."

"What?"

"Understand that I need a quiet room to understand this Pokémon, "N explained.

"Come on, sir, "Red said unusually politely, "He'll be done in a minute."

"Do watcha' gotta do, N!" Sorin encouraged.

"Thank you, "N replied as Red and Sorin left the room.

N, now alone, closed his eyes, and concentrated, "Come on. Show me your heart, "He said to the egg. In N's mind, he could see the Pokémon, but a bright light was behind it, so he could only make out what you would be able to see from someone's shadow. But he could definitely make out its long tail. _Wait. The shadow is lifting! I can almost make it out, I-_ but he was cut off from his thoughts by a loud knock on the door. "Huh?!" N jumped.

"Hey, N!" Sorin called, "Are you alive in there? You've been in there for two hours!"

"Mr. Sorin, "Red's voice came much quieter, "You can't bother him when he gets like this!"

"I'm fine, "N called back. The door suddenly opened and N said, "I made out what I could of this Pokémon. It looked like a Meowth."

"But it's pink!" Red pointed out.

"That's a good point, which is why I believe it's a shiny Meowth," N said.

"What's shiny?" Red inquired.

"Follow me, "Sorin said. They followed him out of the egg farm (N still holding the egg) and he led them to one of the pastures. "See that?" He asked, "Those Bulbasaur are all the same color. Except for that one over there, "He pointed to a Bulbasaur who looked different from the rest, "That Bulbasaur's body color is much darker than all of her friends. She's what we refer to as a Shiny Pokémon. Shiny Pokémon are very rare, so she's the only one we have on the farm. But she's very cool to look at, don't you agree?"

"That's amazing!" Red exclaimed with excitement, "I've never seen a Shiny Pokémon before!"

"I can tell, "N said unenthusiastically. "Back to the egg. The shadow was lifting, so it will probably hatch soon, given the proper treatment."

"What do you mean by 'the shadow is lifting'?" Sorin asked.

"He means that-"Red started, but N slapped his hand over Red's mouth to keep him from explaining in detail.

"I simply meant that the egg had started glowing, "N answered.

"Oh? Well that's great news!" Sorin said happily (evidently, everyone had forgotten about the tour they were going on, and had decided to, quite literally, crack open this case).

"So, since it's a Meowth, what kind of treatment does it get?" Red asked Sorin.

"I don't think it needs special treatment, you too, "N said, interrupting the long speech that Sorin was about to give Red. "I think it wants to go back in that room. It felt comfortable there. Alone in the dark, "N said, "I think that that's exactly where this Pokémon wants to go. I can barely resist walking there, it's will is so strong!"

"I don't understand you, N, "Sorin said, "But, I suppose that life would be rather boring if we understood everything, so I guess I don't have to understand." N nodded in agreement and led the two back to the dark room. He set the egg down on the counter on top of a pillow.

"Ok, "N said, "Now let's leave."

The three left the room and Red exclaimed, "Hold it, N!" N stopped just before exiting the room.

"What now?" N asked.

"That Pokémon didn't start hatching alone in the dark. You were in there with it! So you'll have to stay with it until it hatches!"

"WHAT!?" N shouted in surprise.

"No, Red's quite right, "Sorin agreed, reinforcing Red's notion.

"Besides, "Red said with a look that was a mix between evil and mischievous, "You made us wait out here for two hours, so now it's your turn to wait!" And with that, he closed and locked the door on his friend.

A sighed "I hate you" could be heard from the inside of the room, to which Red replied, "I know. Besides, I'm your best friend! We're supposed to do stuff like lock each other in…dark…scary…rooms…ALONE!"

"You're such a pessimist."

"Why don't you use words we can all understand?"

"We do all understand it! You're the only one who doesn't."

"Well, actually…"Sorin cut in.

"The dictionary definition of the word pessimist is 'A person who habitually sees the worst or is disposed to be gloomy', "N informed the two of them, who simultaneously stretched out the word, "Oh."

"Well, no matter what you say, I'm-, "Red started.

"Shut up!" N shouted, two words he rarely used.

"How rude!" Sorin exclaimed.

"What is it?" Red asked, knowing the severity of the moment and ignoring Sorin's comment.

"Shhh!" N Whispered, "It's starting."

Not another word was uttered from the three of them. A white glow was seen through the tiny window on the door. N gasped.

"What's wrong? What is it?" Red asked immediately, getting worried about his friend.

"Not a Meowth!" N stared at the Pokémon in his hands with mixed feelings that he himself did not understand. The glowing ceased. It blinked thrice with its large blue eyes. It's fluffy, pink fur soothed N's calloused hands. Its long tail waved in the air.

It opened its small mouth and said, "…Mew…"

**To Be Continued**


	7. Chapter 7: New Species Pokemon

**Author's Note**

**-Don't forget to check out my other book, 'The Story of Paul: Sinnoh'!**

**-I know that Legendary Pokemon don't have gender's, but I'm giving this one a gender.**

**Chapter 7: The New Species Pokémon.**

"N? N, what is it?" Red asked, "Are you alright?"

"F-fine…, "Came N's faint reply. His heart palpitate at the sight of the deep blue eyes staring into his. "W-what are you? I mean what species of Pokémon?" He asked the pink Pokémon.

"Mew?" It cocked its head. Then it suddenly jumped up and started flying around his head. "Mew Mew Mew!" It said happily.

"D'you think that I'm… your mother?" N asked in disbelief. He knew that sometimes when a Pokémon hatched from an egg, it thought that the first person it saw was its mother**(P.S. That is the reason the last chapter was called Are You My Mother?)**. The Pokémon landed on his shoulder and rubbed its small face against his cheek **affectionately**. "Uh, hi. My name's N."

"Mew!" It said.

"Does that mean you're a mew?" He asked, hearing it speak. "Oh, that's right!" He remembered his PokeDex, given to him by Professor Oak, "Mew, the New Species Pokémon, "It rang, "Mew is said to possess the genetic composition of all Pokémon. It is capable of making itself invisible at will, so it entirely avoids notice even if it approaches people."

"So you can turn invisible, huh, Mew?" N asked it.

"Mew?"

"So you're kind of like a phantom then."

"Mew! Mew, Mew!" It said.

"You like that?" N asked it, "I like it too. I'll call you Phantom."

"Mew Mew Mew! Mew Mew Mew!" It agreed.

"N, what are you doing in there?" Sorin's (impatient sounding) voice asked.

"Oh, right. Sorry, "N apologized, "The Pokémon hatched."

"So, what is it?" Red asked with enthusiasm.

"Come see!" N encouraged and they opened the door to see the pink Pokémon flying in intercepting circles around N.

"Oh!" Sorin said, "It's very cute, but what is it? I've never seen one before."

"The PokéDex says it's called a Mew, "N told them.

"Watcha gonna name it?" Red asked N, sitting backwards on a chair with his chin on the back of it.

"Red, it doesn't belong to me, "N reminded.

"Nonsense!" Sorin cut in, "That Pokémon obviously thinks very highly of you, so I think it would be perfect if you kept it."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. We don't want a miserable Pokémon, now do we?" He asked.

N smiled and said, "No, sir. We don't!"

"You shouldn't change its environment too soon after it's born. You should be able to leave in about two days. Until then, Please feel welcome in the guest room!" Sorin offered.

"Thank you very much, sir, "N thanked. Red didn't say anything, so N nudged him with his elbow.

"Uh, yeah! Thanks!" Red said.

"Feel free to wander around the farm as you like, "Sorin said.

"Again, thank you, Mr. Sorin."

"It's no problem." Sorin said. "It's always a pleasure to have two young, honest boys such as yourselves joining us!" The boys looked at each other and Red asked, "Can we go out in the pastures?"

"Sure! I hate to leave you here, but I have some things to get to… So if you'll excuse me…, "He said and he disappeared in all of the isles of eggs.

Let's go. They originally went into the abandoned pasture to train there Pokémon, but they found themselves instead, laying on the ground and smelling the sweet grass that stuck up about a foot above their heads. N was holding his sleeping, baby Mew on his chest.

"Hey, Red?" N asked.

"Hey what?" Red asked in return.

"You know how he said we were honest?"

"I was thinking about that too."

"Are we honest now?"

"It depends on how you look at it. You lie all the time, so I wouldn't exactly call you honest. What's your evaluation on me?"

"Well, you'd kind of steal from everybody in Pallet town. I mean, don't get me wrong, you're good at it and all. But we did get a lot of unwanted trouble in Viridian by Nurse Joy for it. But, no. I don't think you define an honest chap."

"Yeah, I guess so, "Red agreed. "I had my reasons for stealing."

"I know." N thought for a moment. "Do you remember that time when we made paint explode on that one guy that always hated us?"

"Yeah, "Red remembered. "We filled a water balloon with paint above his house and then popped with a pencil. There was red paint everywhere!" They laughed nostalgically.

"Come to think of it… I think his house still has some red paint on it, even though he moved to Cinnabar Island."

"That's right, it does. I wonder why he moved away."

"Go ahead and take a wild guess, "N said sarcastically.

"Right, right, "Red concluded, "I suppose it was our fault after all."

"We used to do pranks like that all the time, "N said, "Why did we stop? I've forgotten."

"We only stopped a few months ago, but we stopped so that we could catch up on our Pokémon knowledge. That plus you were taking care of that Pidgeotto, "Red reminded him.

"Oh. That's right. It broke its wing in a battle against that trainers' Fearow."

"What was his name?" Red asked.

"Chrane. He was fourteen and full of himself. He had blonde hair and green eyes and had diamond stud earrings, "N said bitterly, lowering his eyebrows in disgust of the person.

"I just asked his name, ya' know, "Red informed, "So, what's that new Pokémon of yours know?"

"Transform and Pound."

"What's Transform?" Red asked.

"I don't know, "N replied.

"Well can you have it use it?"

"She's asleep, "He whispered his reply.

"Oh, "Red said, sounding disappointed. Apparently, N heard the disappointment in Red's voice, because he said, "I'll show you later."

They were quiet for a few minutes, when Red said, "Sure is a nice day." Indeed, it was. Wind was blowing gently through the grass. It wasn't hot, nor was it cold. Every now and then, a cloud would attempt to hide the light of the sun, but was always blown away by the soft air currents. Phantom awoke from her nap about an hour later. N sent out Titanic and said, "Titanic, this is the newest member of our crew, Phantom. Phantom, Titanic. Titanic, Phantom."

"I wanna show her my Pokémon now!" Red said, sending out his Charmander, Spearow and Rattata. "Guys, this is Phantom, N's new Pokémon."

Everyone greeted Phantom warmly. Red suggested that they have lunch now so that the Pokémon could get to know each other more, to which N agreed.

The boys ate the sandwiches that Tara had given them, and set out bowls that were filled with Pokémon food for their Pokémon to eat.

"This is supposed to be really high-quality Pokémon Food, "Red said.

"How did you get it?" N asked suspiciously.

"Calm down. I bought it with the prize money I got from the Viridian gym."

"Oh. Ok. Is it good, Phantom?" N asked to his Mew. The Mew was sitting on the ground with her legs in front of her and nibbling on a piece of Pokémon food. "It'll probably taste better with this seasoning, "N said, sprinkling some brown seasoning on Mew and Squirtle's food from a small, glass bottle.

"What is that?" Red asked, the sounds barely discernible due to the fact that he had food in his mouth.

"It's called Cardamom and it grows wildly near here. No one knows about it because it's hidden in the thick of the forest, but it's very expensive stuff. I only have this one container so I'll have to go refill it soon."

"Where d'you find the time for gardening!?"

"Please swallow before speaking next time. I do what you call 'gardening' while you train your Pokémon."

"Mm." This was thought to be an attempt of saying 'oh', but Red couldn't actually say the latter because he had just taken another bite out of his sandwich. They finished their sandwiches and the Pokémon played together for a while, and then Red remembered, "Hey, N!"

"Hm?"

"You were gonna show me Transform!"

"Oh, right. That, "N remembered. "Phantom, dear. Use Transform."

Phantom nodded and glowed white for a second, when it stopped glowing, a Charmander had taken her place. "What've you done with his Mew!" Red demanded.

"I see, "N said, ignoring his friend, "So with Transform, she can take on the form of any Pokémon. Interesting. Thank you, Phantom. You can change back now." The Charmander changed back into a Mew and rested inside of N's white over shirt. They left the pasture and wandered about the farm. Akatsuki was sitting on the roof of the barn for the Miltank, a Pokémon from Johto.

"Hey, Red! Natural!" He called out, "Come up here!"

"Akatsuki-chan! Stop calling me Natural!" N called back.

"C'mere!" Akatsuki said again, waving them in.

Red and N climbed up the side of the barn with ease, "You could've just used the ladder, ya' know." Akatsuki pointed behind him to a ladder that was screwed into the back wall. Akatsuki gasped with delight and exclaimed, "You have a new Pokémon!"

N looked down at the Mew in his shirt and said, "Yeah."

"That's so cool! Did you get her from the egg farm?"

"Yeah, he did!" Red told Akatsuki the story brilliantly from beginning to end. Akatsuki was completely entranced by the pink Pokémon.

"Aww, "He said, "It's so cute! I wish I could have one!"

"But I thought you already had the cutest Pokémon of all?" N asked.

"That's right, I do! And don't you ever forget it!" Akatsuki warned.

"Speaking of which, weren't we gonna have a battle?" Red remembered.

"Oh! That's right!" Akatsuki agreed, "We've been looking forward to it! Now let's get off this roof and have a battle!"

They got off of the roof of the barn (this time taking the ladder) and walked over to an open space.

"I'll be referee, "N said, "One-on-one. Obviously no subs. Go ahead and begin."

"Charmander! Come forth!" Red shouted.

"Eevee-_chan_! Come out and be cute!" Akatsuki sent out his small Pokémon.

"Charmander, use Dragon Rage!" The attack hit Eevee, but didn't do much damage.

_It's about to evolve_ N thought.

"Eevee, use Tackle!" Eevee ran up to Charmander and tackled him forcefully.

_Any second now_.

"Charmander! Ember!" Chramander's mouth glowed orange and it spit small flames at Eevee.

"Eevee, dodge and use Tickle!" Eevee jumped the Ember and landed behind Charmander. It used its fluffy tail to tickle Charmander's Attack and Defense stats into falling.

_There it is!_ Charmander suddenly started glowing a radiant blue. Charmander's body was changing shape. A horn extended from his head and his claws grew larger and sharper.

"Charmander! You-you…you evolved!" Red shouted in disbelief. "PokéDex, use Describe attack!" He pulled his PokéDex out of his pocket and flipped it open. "Charmelion, the flame Pokémon. Charmeleon mercilessly destroys its foes using its sharp claws. If it encounters a strong foe, it turns aggressive. In this excited state, the flame at the tip of its tail flares with a bluish white color."

_Hmph. Called it._

"Awesome!" Red exclaimed, "And you've got a new move! Let's use it. Charmeleon, use Fire Fang!" Charmeloen's mouth was filled with fire and it lunged at Eevee, biting down hard.

"Eev!" It exclaimed in pain. The cry made N quietly gasp sympathetically.

"Eevee! I know you can get up!" Akatsuki cried.

"Maybe, but we won't give you the chance! Charmeleon, use Dragon Rage!" The attack hit and Eevee flew back a couple of feet.

"Eevee! Get up! Please, get up, Eevee!" Akatsuki said, "Eevee, please get-."

"It's over, Akatsuki, "N interrupted. "Don't push your friends beyond their limits. Eevee has given her life to you and for that, you should be grateful. Know that this Eevee did not have to stay and be your friend. She helped you way back then because she could. So asking her to do anything more after she's already saved your life is a disgrace to her." N closed his eyes and sighed. He squatted down to the level of the boy, who was sitting on the ground with tears in his eyes. "Do you care about this Pokémon, Akatsuki?" N asked in a softer voice.

"Yes. Yes I do."

"Good. Just make sure that you continue to care about her and she will do the same to you."

"Right. I'm really sorry, Eevee! Won't you please forgive me?"

"She already has, Akatsuki…. You should go get her healed. You too, Red."

"Right!" They said simultaneously.

N sighed. _Calm down, N. You'll wake Phantom_. He thought as the sun was setting. For Phantom had already fallen asleep inside his shirt.

**To Be Continued**

**Anything you really liked or disliked about this chapter? If so, don't be too shy to tell me if you review. Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed Blood Red so far! And keep your eyes peeled for the next installment!**

**BTW here's some more long words: Gubernaculums, Sarsaparilla and Honorificabilitudinitatibus. Try to pronounce them. These words don't exactly roll off the tongue as easily as others, but I hope you enjoy them!**


	8. Chapter 8: Terrible Three

**Chapter 8: Terrible Three**

** Author's note**

** -I made a really excellent (in my opinion the best) new chapter for 'The Story of Paul', so don't forget to check it out if you like! Please enjoy!**

N and Red were staying at Viridian Breeding Farm as N's new Pokémon: Phantom the Mew, adjusted to its environment. They were biting into their second day on the farm. Nothing eventful had happened that day, so let's skip to that night. Say 6:30, sunset.

N picked up his spoon and ate his soup with the politest of manners (though he sighed as he saw Red holding his bowl to his face, shoveling it down his throat), with Mew on his head, her tail wrapped around N's neck like a snake.

"So, I realized I haven't had much time to speak with you boys, "Tara said, "So where are you from?"

"We're from-"Red started, but stopped( N covering Red's mouth…again.)

"We're from Viridian city, "N lied; with good reason (to him). He concluded that if they knew they were from Pallet town, they might find out they were the trouble makers and N didn't want the three of them to think lowly of them.

"Oh? How come you've never come before?" Sorin asked.

"That's because-" Red said, momentarily breaking free of N's grasp, but it was quickly replaced.

"Our parents wouldn't let us leave until we got our first Pokémon at age ten, "N finished for Red.

"Oh, "Tara said, "What are they like?"

"Well, my dad's a-"Red started with a grudge held in his voice, clearly sounding as though he didn't like his father.

"An excellent man, "N interrupted Red. "His father works for the Silph Company in Saffron City. As does my father. We both went to the same school until we got our first Pokémon."

"Sounds cool! What's Saffron city like, Natural?" Akatsuki asked N.

"Stop calling me Natural. We've never been, "N answered.

"Aw. I thought you'd be able to tell me about it, "Akatsuki said, disappointment flowing through his voice and into N's ear, chilling his nerves.

"It's big…and kinda yellowy!" Red answered.

"I'd really like to meet your parents. Maybe the next time I go to Viridian City, I'll bump into them!" Tara said with a smile.

"Perhaps. What about you, if I'm not imposing. Was this business inherited to you? Or did you buy it?"

"It's a family business!" Sorin exclaimed, "Akatsuki will be runnin' the place when he gets old enough."

"Yeah!" Akatsuki said excitedly, "I can't wait! I love working here!"

"So, N. Since you're from Viridian, does that mean you collect gym badges?" Tara asked.

"No, ma'am. Well, Red does. I don't, "N replied.

"Oh? And why's that?" Tara asked.

"He doesn't battle!" Akatsuki chimed in.

"Oh, I see. That makes sense to me, "Tara said, smiling. "So, you got that Pokémon from the egg farm?"

"Well… with all due respect, ma'am, "N replied, trying to sound as polite as possible, "I made a friend. I didn't get a Pokémon."

"Oh…uh…right, "Tara agreed.

"But yes, "N continued, "I did befriend her at the egg farm."

"So what is she?" Tara asked.

"She's called a Mew, though I call her Phantom, "N replied.

"Oh. She's very cute!" Tara complimented.

"Isn't she just?" Akatsuki agreed.

"So you said you're collecting badges?" Tara said conversationally, "How many have you got?"

"Just the Glitter Badge from Viridian, "Red said when N released his hand from Red's mouth.

"Did either of your parents collect Gym Badges?" Tara asked Red.

_Stop prying!_ N thought. "Well… sort of, "Red answered.

"What do you mean by sort of?" Akatsuki asked.

"My father… he did, "Red replied.

"Oh, did he now? I'll bet he's proud of his little boy, eh?" Sorin pointed out.

"Wouldn't count on it."

"What?" The three family members asked simultaneously.

"I mean… probably!" Red corrected.

"But what-,"Tara was cut off by a loud crashing sound coming from the Egg Farm. "What was that?"

"I don't know, "Sorin said, "I'll go check it out." He stood up. By this time, the sun had gone down and all of the Pokémon were safe in the barns. But the Egg Farm had a glass roof like a greenhouse so it would be easy for someone to break in.

"Please, sir, "N started, "Let us come with you."

"No. Negative. Not happening!" Sorin said, fishing around in his pocket for his PokéBall.

"We can help!" Red pleaded.

Sorin sighed and said, "Fine, come if you want, but by this time, the people have probably already gotten away, so I suggest we hurry!"

Red smiled with delight, but N's face was serious as they ran out of the house and across the fields. Muddy footprints trailed out of the Egg Farm. There was no time to see what the person… or people had stolen. They followed the footprints to the real Greenhouse on the west side of the farm.

Sorin didn't need to dig in his pockets for keys, someone had picked the lock. The door creaked slightly as they opened it wider for Sorin's fat body to fit through. N tucked Phantom inside his white shirt, with one arm across his chest, holding her; her fluffiness not reaching his skin because of his black undershirt.

Snapping twigs and rusting leaves were heard here and there. The bafflingly impossible size of the Greenhouse left them clueless.

"Where are the tallest trees?" Red asked quickly.

"In the middle. Follow me!" Sorin replied, leading them to a couple of tall pine trees, their tops sticking out awkwardly from the smaller trees and bushes around them. Red used his excellent tree climbing skills to climb to the top of the tree. He surveyed the area closely, N looking up at him worriedly, "Be careful!" N whispered to Red.

Sometimes, Red saw leaves move on bushes, or the glint of the moon reflecting on glass. He quickly descended the tree saying, "Looks like they're going to the pond on the east side."

"Why would they go to the pond?" N asked, Phantom sticking her head out of his shirt.

"We keep all of our Water Stones at the bottom of that pond! Let's hurry!" Sorin answered. They dashed to the small pond, forsaking attempts to be silent.

"You're too late, farmer!" Someone shouted. Three men dressed in black scoffed at them. The one in the middle, obviously the leader of the three was the one who had spoken. "We'll be going now that we have your treasures!" They each had large magnets which the water stones were stuck to.

"I don't think so!" N revolted, "Titanic, my friend! Please help us!" He raised Titanic's PokéBall high in the air; a blue turtle emerged from the Ball and withdrew his body into his shell. He spun through the air, narrowly slicing past the three men.

"Who are you people!" Red demanded.

"And what do you want with our Water Stones?" Sorin added in.

"Time for introductions, boys!" The leader said, dodging the Squirtle.

"Right!" the other two agreed. The three of them started simultaneously chanting: **_(BEST ENJOYED WHEN READ ALOUD)_**

_The silence that moves through earth, trees and sky,_

_ We steal because it helps the time to pass by._

_ Our mad skills could make any grown man cry._

_ Our names are Zachary, Giovanni and William Fly._

_ We brothers will do what we do best._

_ We will join, interrupt and then crash your fest,_

_ Without the use of trickery or jest,_

_ Our talent will soon be on history tests!_

_ We Terrible Three are not in a plight,_

_ We just run to the darkness and bring a great blight!_

_ Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!_

_ Surrender now or prepare to fight!_

"I've heard of Team Rocket, "Red said, "But I never imagined them to fight by reciting poems!"

"Poems? That is our team chant!" Zachary sounded surprised, "You maggot, you'll pay!"

"Right now, I'm more concerned about the Fly's than the maggot!" Red shouted, "Charmeleon! Come forth and use Ember!"

"Tentacool, counter that with Bubblebeam!" A blue jellyfish blew large, fast bubbles in a stream from its mouth. The bubbles destroyed the Ember and went through to hit Charmeleon. Charmeleon flew back and rolled onto the ground.

William saw Red's badge case sticking out of his pocket, "You're a Gym Challenger! You should be able to handle a simple type disadvantage!" He mocked.

"I plan to, "Red called back, "Charmeleon, use Smokescreen to hide yourself!"

The thick smoke covered the area. Charmeleon let loose a couple of Dragon Rages, that lit up the smoke in certain places. When the smoke cleared, Zachary, Giovanni and William were gone and so was their Tentacool.

Giovanni's voice came loudly from an unknown place, "Fool. You may have thought that that Smokescreen would shield you and therefore give you an advantage, but in truth, we were shielded from your sight, and therefore granted the opportunity to remove your filthy hands from clinging to our backs. But perhaps we shall meet again…"

"They got away…, "Red said. He was about to say something else, but N cut him off saying, "I'm sorry, Tentacool, my friend. I was unable to assist you."

"Thank goodness!" Sorin's voice said.

"What is it?" Red asked.

"We still have several Water Stones, "Sorin replied.

"That's good to hear. How did they take them?" Red wondered.

"At the core of a Water Stone is a metallic rock. The Terrible Three must have taken the Magnets in the Egg Farm that were originally for the electric-type Pokémon and used them to magnetize the Water Stones, "N answered in his catastrophically observant way. They made their way back to the house, each of them pondering in his mind what the Three would be using the Water Stones for as they undressed and curled into bed.

N lay awake, looking at the wooden roof which slanted upwards as it came towards him, with his small Mew sleeping between N's outstretched arm and his chest and his Squirtle by his head. He couldn't rid himself of the thought. _Red and I took a vow, we swore an oath to protect Pokémon from evil trainers such as these… and yet we were not strong enough… or be it… smart enough to save the Tentacool and whatever other number of Pokémon those people who refer to themselves as Pokémon Trainers have._

The sun peered through the lone window; Red, having the good luck of sleeping by the wall, was still asleep. The usual routine came that morning. Akatsuki would rise at dawn, proving his name, and barge into Red and N's room. Akatsuki called N Natural again, N told him to leave and then he grabbed Red by the wrist and pulled him out of bed. After dressing, the two of them went downstairs for breakfast. N had pulled his hair into a pony-tail, and Red, naturally, had never really cared enough to fix his hair or even look at himself in a mirror in the morning.

"Sorin told me what happened last night, "Tara said, briefly turning away from the eggs that were sizzling on a frying pan, "He said you two were very heroic!"

"Yeah, well-, "Red started, prematurely taking the hero position.

"Not really, "N stated bluntly in an agitated tone, and maybe, just maybe, glancing over at Red.

"But, as I was telling Akatsuki, you two boys should be leaving after breakfast. That Mew of yours is old and strong enough now that it will be able to adapt rather well to your surroundings, "Tara informed.

"Then you can get out of our hair, "Sorin joked.

The two boys walked down the dirt road, leaving the Viridian Breeding Farm and their new friends behind, and looking towards Pewter City, and a new Gym Badge.

**To be continued**


	9. Chapter 9: The Viridian Forest

**Chapter 9: The Viridian Forest**

Red and N stopped for lunch on the tree-line of Viridian Forest. While eating the amazing sandwich given to him by Tara, Red asked N, "What kind of Pokémon d'you think we'll meet in there?"

"Forests are usually home to Bug, Grass and Flying type Pokémon, so I guess that's what we'll find, "N answered.

"Oh. I wonder what species of Pokémon we'll find. I wonder how many different species of Pokémon there are in the world!"

"Yeah…, "N agreed, "Hey, Red?"

"Hmm?"

"Let's have a battle."

"Well, that was random and unexpected, "Red looked at his friend with one eyebrow raised. N shrugged and said, "I need to level up my Pokémon. And don't worry. I bought plenty of Potions from the PokéMart in Viridian."

"Well, ok then. Will you use Phantom?" Red asked.

"Of course not!" N replied, "The poor dear's asleep. I'll use Titanic, who wants to battle anyway."

"Ok, "Red said, "Then I'll use Spearow. I haven't gotten to use it in battle in a while."

"Alright then. Titanic, show them how to battle correctly!" N shouted, sending out his Squirtle.

"Spearow, come forth!" Red said, approximately twenty feet away from N.

"If you don't mind, "N said, "We'll be starting. Titanic, use Rapid Spin!" The Squirtle withdrew himself into his shell and launched toward Spearow like a spinning arrow.

"Spearow, counter with Aerial Ace!" Spearow flipped in mid-air and charged, head-first towards Titanic, the two meeting caused them both to fly back. The Squirtle landed on his feet, but Spearow rolled onto the ground.

"I'm sorry, Spearow, my friend. Titanic, use Water Gun!" Titanic forcefully spit a stream of water from his mouth. _Almost there… almost there!_ N thought.

"Spearow, can you get up?" Red asked his Pokémon, the latter nodded and speedily flew into the air, dodging the Water Gun. _Just a little more!_ N thought.

"Great job, Spearow! You're one tough Pokémon! Use Pursuit!"

"Titanic, counter with Bite, please, "N said _and… NOW!_ The two Pokémon clashed, bright blue light exploded everywhere, consuming the two Pokémon with its glow, blotching out the sun for just a moment. N and Red both covered their eyes with their forearms for fear of going blind.

"FEAAAR!" "WAAR!" They heard the two Pokémon yell fiercely. They dropped to the ground, one on long talons, the other on dark blue feet.

"WAR! WARTORTLE!" N's newly evolved Pokémon said with his new voice.

"FEAAR! FEAROOOW!" Shouted Red's new Fearow.

"Awesome!" Red shouted, N echoing him. "You both evolved. Congratulations, that's wonderful!"

"Way to go, Titanic and Fearow, my friends!" N whooped.

"Should we continue, N?" Red asked.

"No, I think we've done enough training, and besides. We have to get your Gym Badge!"

"Right! Let's go!" Red returned his newly evolved Fearow to his PokéBall and marched into the forest. Phantom was sleeping inside of N's shirt, so Wartortle rode on N's shoulder. N followed behind his friend.

"I'm gonna catch the very first Pokémon I see here!" Red shouted confidently.

N smiled and said, "Perhaps, but with that loud voice you'll scare them all away."

Red ignored his comment and said, "N, my friend. By the time we get to Pewter city, we'll have so many new friends, we won't be able to count them!"

"I sure hope so."

"Viridian Forest!" Red shouted, apparently now speaking to the trees, "Watch out 'cuz here we come!"

"Tortle!" Titanic agreed.

"Let's go, then," Red continued confidently marching, N following behind him. The distance at which they could see became smaller the deeper into the forest they went. There was, luckily, a dirt road to keep them from getting lost. The fragrance of the trees almost made them forget about their aching feet.

They couldn't tell, because they couldn't see the sun in the sky, but they supposed it was about 1:00 in the afternoon. They sat down to eat their late lunch and decided to set up camp there. They were, after all, both footsore. They had chosen an excellent place to stop; the sun streamed more clearly through the leaves and a small, clear brook gave them an endless water supply. Now, I won't give the term babbling to the brook because we all know that water cannot speak, but it did give off a pleasant gurgling (if ever there was) sound.

N sat, hugging his shins, by the brook, watching the water-type Pokémon swim by (it was probably mostly Magikarp) as Red set up the tent (don't even ask where he manages to hide a two-person tent, because I don't know myself). Phantom played with Titanic, Charmeleon, Fearow and Rattata, chasing each other around and laughing when they fell down.

"N?" Red asked, smiling as he watched the Pokémon play.

"Yeah?" N replied

"Do you think Pokémon like their PokéBalls?"

"Some do, some don't, "N stated. Red couldn't tell from N's facial expression, but N was excited that Red had asked the question.

"Do mine?" Red asked with concern in his voice.

"They don't mind either way, "N answered.

"Good. I'd hate to put them inside a PokéBall if they didn't like it. I-, "Suddenly, Red's voice was cut off by a loud cry. The boys bounced to their feet. Hastily Red returned his Pokémon to their PokéBalls, and they rushed off towards the place where the voice had sounded. "What was that?" Red asked, panting.

"I don't know, but we'll soon find out!" N answered.

Thick brambles clawed at their heels as they dove over a fallen tree. Sliding down a hill into a clearing, they saw a great tree that the voice that was hosting an evolution chain of… Kakuna! The shelled Pokémon glowed blue, one after another. The blinding light the boys had only experienced twice reflected off of every leaf and blade of grass. Buzzing wings were heard all around them. Bold colors of yellow and black rings cascaded around them. "Don't move, "N whispered to Red. Red gratefully took his advice, staying as still as humanly possible. "Sbee sbee!" One Beedrill shouted, taking note of N and Red and alerting the others.

"Whadda we do!" Red asked, hungry for more advice.

"RUUUUN!" N shouted, returning his Pokémon to their PokéBalls. The boys scrambled up the hill, narrowly dodging the Beedrill's pointed stingers sometimes and getting cut and stung by them even more. "Ah!" Red cried, getting a deep cut from an especially enraged Beedrill.

"To the river! Beedrill won't follow us underwater!" N remembered.

"Sounds great!" Red said. But then he realized, "I don't know where to find the river!"

"Me either!" N shouted, "But if we keep running, we're bound to come across it sometime!"

"Sounds logical, "Red agreed. So they continued to run from the angry Beedrill as the latters continued to chase their fleeing party crashers. The Beedrill closed in on them, and then, "CHUUUUUUU!" Yellow lightning exploded everywhere, hitting all the Beedrill, driving them back to their nests. "Those were Thundershocks!" Red said. Pikachu and Pichu poked their small heads out of the trees, outnumbering the Beedrill ten to one.

"We're in Pikachu territory now, "N whispered to Red. The two boys were sitting on the ground, leaning against their hands and looking up at all the small, yellow faces looking down at them.

"Thank you, Pikachu!" Red shouted, waving his uninjured arm.

"Chu!" All the Pikachu and Pichu scattered, apparently surprised and frightened by Red's sudden movements.

"No Wait!" Red called to them, "I wanted to… thank the Pichu… too."

"Smoothly done, "N said sarcastically.

"Why'd they run away?" Red asked N.

"You're a human. It's not very likely that many of them have ever seen a human, "N informed, "You scared them, "He added.

"I would never hurt them!" Red argued.

"Red, "N said calmly, "Nor would I, but these Pikachu have never seen anything like us. They don't know what we are or why we're in their territory."

"Yeah, "Red finally agreed, "I guess so."

A few seconds of cherished silence, to N anyway, passed, when Red stood up and looked around, "Where's our camp?"

"I… misplaced it…!" N mumbled.

"I'll take that as an 'I don't know'. Well, never fear, my friend. I shall find us a way back to our temporary home!" Red encouraged.

"That makes me fear more than I did before, "N said with a smile.

Red thought for a moment, and N let him (already having come up with an idea of his own), then, an idea came to him.

"Fearow!" Sending out the latter, Red said, "Could you please fly around and see if you can find our camp?"

"Or the river?" N added. Fearow nodded and flew high into the sky, craning his long neck in all directions to find a glimpse of their camp. The boys searched themselves, Red cradling his injured arm, but still, all signs turned up negative. Fearow returned to Red, who said, "Did you find it?"

"Fear…, "Fearow answered, shaking his head.

"Aww, man!" Red slouched in defeat. N sighed and thought. "Well, we jumped over some thick brambles on our way to the horde of Beedrill, "He remembered, "So if we find a clump of brambles…, "he looked around, seeing brambles everywhere, "Nevermind…"

"The wild Pokémon are bound to know where the river is, "Red pointed out.

"That's actually really smart, "N said.

"Thank you, "Red said, not sure if N's remark was a compliment or not. They looked around for wild pokemon, but none were around. Red secretly tied a piece of cloth around his injury underneath his black long-sleeved shirt.

A curious Pikachu cautiously poked its head out from the shelter of a bush. Red, hearing the rustle of leaves, turned around. Their eyes locked. The Pikachu cocked its head and wiggled its little nose, the way they do when they sniff. Seeing no harm in the boy, it slowly walked through the bush; first with its fore-quarters, then hind-quarters, and finally its long, yellow tail.

Red slowly sat down, as to not scare the small Pokémon, and let it sniff his hand. Red choked down a few words and slowly put his hand in his pocket, withdrawing it again, with a berry in his palm. He held it out to the Pikachu; the latter was wary at first, but then it took the blue Oran Berry out of Red's hand with its small yellow ones and happily ate the berry, every kind of sweet, sour, bitter, spicy and dry flavor pouring into its mouth.

N watched Red bond with the wild Pokémon with amazement in his eyes. Red might not have been the smartest of people, but in a contest of caring for Pokémon, Red would've won.

"Can you help me?" Red whispered to the Pikachu in the quietest of voices.

"Pi?" It seemed to ask 'with what?'

"Do you know where the river is?"

"Pika!" It stood on all fours and bounded off with great speed. Red followed after it, passing by N and grabbing him by the shirt as he went. _So he knew I was there the whole time?_ N thought.

The yellow mouse led them to the river, and, as it happened, their camp site.

"Thank you, "Red said to the Pikachu.

"Piiika, "it replied

"Pika Pika! Pikachu!" A Pikachu called from a distance. The Pikachu that Red had befriended wiggled its ears and ran off back into Pikachu territory. Red smiled after it for a long time, wishing it would not leave him.


	10. Chapter 10: Pika Power

**Chapter 10: Pika Power**

Red sat by the river, letting its calming sound flow into his ears. He took a deep breath and stood up. It was already about ten PM and N had retired to the tent.

N's eyes opened as the noise of Red sliding into his sleeping bag aroused him from his dreams. Red wasn't aware he had awoken his friend, for N's back was turned towards him. Sleep caressed him, pulling him closer and closer in, but the forest had other plans; both of them bolted into a sitting position as something brushed against the side of their zipped tent.

"Hey, "Red's voice quavered, "What d'you suppose that was?"

"D-dunno, "N replied, just as afraid as his friend, "G-go and check it out!"

Not wanting to dispose of what pride he had left, Red replied, "You're the better suited man for this job!"

"What?" N asked as the shape outside approached the zipper that kept them safely inside, and other things out.

"It-it's going to unzip the tent!"

"M-maybe it doesn't have pose able thumbs!"

"Maybe it can open things with, "Red gulped, "…Teeth!"

"T-teeth?"

The zipper slowly ascended to about halfway, the two unzipped halves flapped about in the wind. The shadow placed it's small, yellow face in the tent and said, "Piiika!"

The boys grunted sighs of relief and Red said, "Thank goodness! To think, we were afraid of a little Pikachu!"

The Pikachu was obviously put off by Red's comment and gave both of the boys a good Shock Wave. Hair frizzed and skin charred, Red's hand dove in his pocket. "Raticate, come forth!" Red's Raticate (newly evolved) intimidatingly stood before the Pikachu, who continued to Shock Wave.

"Raticate, use Flame Wheel!" Red commanded. Pikachu flew back and rolled to the ground. "PokéBall, go catch it!" He threw a PokéBall at the Pikachu. Pikachu was sucked into it by a red light.

The PokéBall rolled around three times and stopped. "YYYYYES!" Red shouted ecstatically, "Woo hoo!"

"Shh! You'll wake the entire forest up!" N warned.

"Sorry, "Red whispered. "But I caught a Pikachu! Dexter, what does it know?" Red asked his PokeDex, wheeling it out and scanning the PokéBall on the ground.

"Well?" N asked.

"Shock Wave-, "

"Obviously, "N interrupted.

"Brick Break, Magnet Rise and Nasty Plot, "Red continued.

"Pretty good, "N accepted. "Magnet Rise should be very useful."

"I agree, it'll give Pikachu immunity to ground type attacks, "Red agreed, picking up the PokéBall and spraying it with a potion to heal the Pikachu inside. "This Pokémon has electricity-storing pouches on its cheeks. These appear to become electrically charged during the night while Pikachu sleeps. It occasionally discharges electricity when it is dozy after waking up," Dexter informed.

Just as the boys got settled again, the sun rose and early morning came. Gradually tearing down their campsite, and had Pikachu lead them out of the forest. It turned out that they were almost through it when they had made their camp.

The sun seemed to blare down on them now that they were out of the forest. They could see Pewter City just beyond route 3, the gym in the background. They raced to the city, briefly stopping at the Pokémon Center to heal, and dove into the nearest restaurant they could find.

They picked up their menus to see nothing but noodles, in fact, Nothing but Noodles was the name of the restaurant and they stayed true to those words. They ordered two bowls of ramen; N sighed as he watched Red wolf down his food, licking the broth of off his chopsticks.

"I suppose you're excited about your gym battle, then?" N asked rhetorically.

"You're challenging the gym?" Someone laughed. N stopped eating as a boy of their age wafted into their presence. "Please. You haven't a chance."

"And who're you to judge?" Red asked, standing up and slamming his hands on the table.

"The name's Blue, "The boy replied, flipping his red hair, "And… you are?" He added with a tone of disgust.

"My name is N, and this is Red, "N replied for the fuming Red.

"You'll have no chance against the Gym Leader, Red, "Blue taunted again.

Red's head was hotter than the noodles as he said, "Oh yeah? We'll be just fine!"

Blue smiled a little maniacally, "Do you have any grass type Pokémon?"

"Huh? I-"

"No? How about water types?"

"I-"

"Ground? Ice? Fighting?"

"Well-"

"I didn't think so. The Leader fights with rock type Pokémon. If you're not prepared, "Blue leaned in closer, "You might run home crying. Ta-ta," He ended, walking away.

Red muttered several ineligible sentences under his breath in successive rapidity. N imagined steam coming out of Red's ears as he took a sip of his tea.

"N!" Red shouted.

"What?"

"Let's go!" Red grabbed N's hand and raced out the door, N quickly left the bill at the table and stumbled to keep up with Red.

"Wh-where are we going?" N asked.

"To the gym, "Red replied, his voice much deeper and more serious than normal. They turned a street corner, plowing through the business people and little children, not stopping until they reached the intimidating building of the Pewter City Gym.

N panted, his hands on his knees, while Red wrenched open the heavy door. They walked into the dark room lit up by a single spotlight that was shining on a single man, sitting cross-legged on the ground.

The man stood up as they entered and said, "Are you Gym Challengers?"

"That's right, are you the Gym Leader?" Red said.

"I am. My name is Brock, and I'll be fighting you. It's not every day that someone walks out of here with a gym badge, in fact, yesterday was the first time in a long time that I gave one away; to a boy named Blue."

"_He _beat you?"

"That's right, and if you wish to enter the Pokémon League, you had better do the same. Send out your Pokémon!" Lights erupted onto the battlefield. The trainers stood at their ends, N standing on the overlooking balcony far above, along with several small children who were cheering for Brock endlessly.

Red's face was emotionless, but serious and focused. He chose Charmeleon as his first Pokémon, Brock sent out Geodude.

"Remember. This will be a three-on-three match, only the challenger can substitute, "The referee announced, "Begin!"

"Geodude, use Magnitude!" Geodude's fists glowed white and it slammed them to the ground, sending quakes towards Charmeleon.

"Dodge, "Red said coolly. Charmeleon both avoided damage, and landed behind Geodude for a close-ranged attack, but Red didn't give the orders.

_Well this is a first_ N leaned in over the rail.

"Geodude, use Tackle backwards!"

"Dodge."

"Rock Throw!"

"Dodge."

It went on like this for quite a while. Red could tell Brock was getting annoyed; would he dare to use his last move?

"Selfdestruct!" Geodude curled into a ball, and glowed, an explosion rained from its body, there would be no dodging this.

"Return, "Red commanded, just before the attack hit Charmeleon.

Brock was extremely taken aback by both his own foolish actions, and the cunning of the boy in front of him.

_One down. Don't get cocky_ N thought, his fingers crossed.

"Omanyte, you're up next!" Brock sent out his pre-historic Pokémon onto the battlefield.

"Pikachu, come forth, "Red said, just as level-headedly as before.

"Pi-ka!"

"We've got him now! Mud Shot!"

"Magnet Rise." Pikachu was lifted into the air by a circle of magnets floating around him, avoiding all damage.

"Use Water Gun!" Brock commanded, pointing at the Pikachu with anticipation.

Red gave no orders until the attack made contact, "Shock Wave." Electricity crawled down the Water Gun, zapping the Omanyte for super-effective damage.

"You may have taken out my first two, "Brock said, "But this next one won't be so easy." He returned Omanyte to its PokéBall and said, "Onix! Go!"

"Onix, use Smack Down!" The Onix threw a great stone at Pikachu, the latter fell to the ground, his Magnet Rise having been taken out with the hit and dealing more damage than usual.

"Return, Pikachu, "Red commanded, Pikachu quickly withdrawing from the battle. "Fearow, come forth."

"FEAR!"

"You're flying type Pokémon is no match for my rock type Pokémon, "Brock laughed.

"We'll see."

"Use Sandstorm!" Onix hit the ground with its rocky tail and a sandstorm whipped up, causing damage to Fearow and raising Onix's own Special Defense.

"Sunny Day, return." After using Sunny Day, Fearow retreated and was replaced with Charmeleon, "Fire Fang!"

Brock had no time to react; Onix was hit and hurt by the Fire Fang, which was powered up by the speedy Sunny Day switch-out.

"Return, "Red commanded again.

By far the most frustrating battle of them all for Brock, he came up with a plan, "Stealth Rock!" Now any Pokémon that came into battle would be hit by the Stealth Rock.

"Pikachu, come forth." The stones around Pikachu attacked it for a moment, and then subsided. "Magnet Rise." Pikachu flew into the air once again.

"Smack Down!"

"Drop onto it, "Red commanded strategically. Pikachu fell onto Onix's head, "Finish this match with Brick Break."

"Piiiika!" Pikachu smacked Onix on the crown of its head with a super-effective move, putting the Onix out for the count.

"Wow, what an amazing battle!" Brock exclaimed, "I've never seen a strategy work so well before in my life! You kept changing it up, I couldn't tell what you were thinking. I've learned a lot from this battle that will help me become a better Leader in the future, I think, "He continued as they met in the middle of the battlefield. "Here, you deserve this more than anyone." He held out his hand to Red, the Pewter City gym badge in his palm.

A whale of a smile split Red's face as he gratefully accepted the badge saying, "Yes! Woohoo!" He heard N whooping,m and Brock's siblings clapping, above him.

"You're a great trainer, Red. Aim for the top, "Brock said truthfully. The two boys left to the Pokémon Center and stayed there for the night, smiles on their faces and joy in their hearts.


	11. Chapter 11: Stories Part 1

**Author's note: I thought that here was a good point to pause temporarily in our story and tell you more about the history of the main characters. Don't forget to make a review, and remember, it doesn't have to be positive. I'll accept criticism just as much as compliments; I want to make this story the best it could possibly be. So, without further adiue…**

**Chapter 11: Stories Part 1**

The illoustrious town of Goldenrod shone in the night from seaside to tree line. A young woman fearfully walked through the streets, something precious hugged against her body. She arrived at her destination, the orphanage.

Tears filled her eyes as she thought of the decision she was about to make. She kissed her baby on the forehead and rang the doorbell, rhythmically rocking her son with immense love. A woman came to the door, her long brown hair pulled to a messy bun. She looked from the girl to her baby as she said, "Can I help you, dear?"

"Yes please, "The young woman said politely, "It's my baby, he's, well, "she started to cry, "Will you take care of him here? I-I need to know that he'll be safe."

"He'll be perfectly fine."

"His life would just go wrong with me involved, so please… take him."

"He'll be in good hands here, "The lady assured. She took the baby inside as his mother left the doorstep; she placed him in one of the upstairs cribs, brought him a blanket and remembered something, "She didn't tell me your name! I suppose I'll have to name you myself. Hm. Your hair is green, the color of nature, so… That's it! I'll call you Natural. I've always wanted a boy with the name Harmonia, so Natural Harmonia and he can take my last name. So your name is Natural Harmonia Gropius!"

Six years passed in the orphanage. Day after day it was the same thing; his roommate, Anthony would tell him about the new Pokémon Adventures Manga that was coming out and buzz about going to Kanto to get a Pokémon.

Rich businessmen would come to the orphanage and go "window shopping", as N liked to call it, for the perfect son or daughter. The one with the most refined manners and excellent etiquette. Unfortunately for them, there was only one person in the whole orphanage who was like that. Margaret, or Sis as many called her, but she had been adopted three years prior.

There were some fun days too, though. Sometimes the Gym Leader, Whitney, would come to the orphanage and let the children play with her Miltank and Clefairy. Or the Pokémon Professor, Rowan, would come from the Sinnoh region to Goldenrod, and the children would meet him by the Pokémon Center. He was a bit scary, but had wonderful stories of the places he had traveled to.

Other than those two things, every day became more boring and hard to bear than the one before it. One hot summer day, while they were at the beach on route 34, and N found a wild Pidgey with a broken wing. Wild Pokémon weren't allowed in the orphanage, so N placed the Pidgey in a small box and took it back with him to the orphanage, keeping it concealed in his white shirt. He took care of it best he could, but eventually he was found out, so he had to release it.

Talons, the Pidgey, often came to the window to see N, and N would treat it as though it were his own Pokémon. Ever since the first time he had seen a Pokémon, he could understand and speak to them, and it was the same with Talons.

As the orphanage was out on a field trip one day to the National Park, Feathers came back to N, but not as a Pidgey, as a Pidgeotto. N was thrilled that his best friend had evolved, but by the time winter came, Talons had to migrate to the south, and N never saw, nor heard from him again.

Mrs. Gropius, the owner of the orphanage, fell ill and died, she hadn't written a will, so the ownership of the orphanage went to her brother, Mitch. The orphans speculated that he was a Gyarados in disguise, because he was easy to anger and hated children. The children lived in fear of him, until one boy came to the orphanage, until N had had enough of him. He had no emotional attachment to this place anymore. He was done waiting for his mother to return. His friends had all been adopted. He decided. It was time to leave.

He stole money from Mitch's wallet while Mitch was sleeping with ease, and left the orphanage. He had been to the train station a few times before, and knew what he had to do. He bought a ticket that would take him to Saffron City in Kanto, and boarded the train.

It was as if someone had shoved ten more crackers into a box than there should have been. The seats were mostly full, and there were a few choice people that N would rather not sit next to, for instance, the man that was concealing a large knife in his pocket, the man who was snoring so loudly, Hoenn could probably hear him, and the woman who continued to apply lipstick, smearing it across her face. So N was forced to stand the whole ride.

It smelled like a mix between old socks and sour milk, and neither of those were desirable smells. A strange man with a hat, sunglasses and trench coat with the collar flipped up, pretended to read the newspaper. The person sitting next to him departed into Newbark Town, along with several other people. The seat next to the man was open.

The only sound that could be heard, was from the wheels of the train, skating across the rails. N sat down next to the shady man and said, just for fun, "What are ya' readin'?

"I'm just, "the rest of the man's answer was indiscernible.

"Why are there holes in your paper that look like eye slots?"

"I don't know what, "again, indiscernible.

"Looks like ya' got yerself a faulty paper there, mister, "N continued to poke fun at the man.

"Alright kid, you've found me out. I'm a member of the International Police, codename, Looker."

"I didn't say nothin' about Inter-dealybob Police; that was all you, "N pointed out.

"A fine spy you'd make someday, kid, "Looker said in his official sounding voice.

"So who're ya' lookin' at?"

"I'm looking for a Pokemon thief that apparently boarded this train, "He said with flair.

"Really? Cool!"

"Yes, my actions are indeed admirable. You would do well to report suspicious characters to yours truly."

"I dunno. I think one guy had a weapon in his pocket."

"Really? Where?"

"He just got off, you should prob'ly jump, "N said.

"Right you are, "He left the room and didn't come back, probably having taken N's bad advice. There were few people left on the train when it arrived in Saffron City.

N was amazed by the city; Goldenrod was miniscule compared to the illustrious wealth that composed Saffron. His eyes darted around, not resting on any one thing for more than a few seconds. He traipsed around, looking for the famous Pokémon Gym.

After searching for quite some time, he found it to be a short ways to the right of the train station. He arrived at the gym, not knowing why he wanted to be there, but gladly basking in the power emanating from the place.

"Were you planning to challenge the Saffron City Gym without any Pokémon?" A voice from behind asked.

"How'd you know I had no Pokémon?" N said, wheeling around

"You… are not from around here, are you, "The black-haired boy asked, not answering N's question.

"Do I stick out?" N asked.

"Not specifically, "The other replied, "It is your speech that gives you away. If I had to guess, I would say that you are from Goldenrod City in Johto, yes?"

"Yeah, how can you tell?"

"It does not matter. My name is Red."

"I'm N, "N said, "But you didn't answer my question. How could you tell that I have no Pokémon? D'you have a Pokémon? Will ya' show it to me?"

"Calm down, you will rub your uncouth speech off onto me. It's been said to happen, "Red stated loftily, "No, I do not own a Pokémon. How can I tell you do not either? I just can."

"Cool!" N's eyes were sparkling, "Where d'you live?"

"I… um I-just-um, "Red's words slurred together and he looked at the ground.

"Don't you have a family? I Don't, my mom left me at the doorstep of an orphanage."

Red's pupils grew wide and unfocused, as if drifting into an unforgettable memory that he wish he could forget. His body quivered slightly, his breath came in shaky portions. His fingers twitched along with his eyebrow.

"Red? S'somthing wrong?" N asked. He put a hand on Red's shoulder. Red snapped awake, N's comforting voice saying, "its ok. You don't have to tell me. I don't have a family either, I understand."

For the first time in N's short life, he felt as though someone understood him. Really understood, and he was sure that Red felt likewise. "So you don't live anywhere, huh? I think we should find a place to live, you an' me. I heard that you can get Pokémon from Pallet Town's Pokémon Professor. I think we should go there!"

Red looked up, a smile on his face, he nodded in agreement. Their moment was broken up by a black and white car with sirens zooming past them. They ran towards the commotion of police cars, encaging someone within them.

The boys knelt down behind one of the cars and peeked over the hood. A tall man was standing next to a white, fore-legged Pokémon with a jagged, red stripe running across its center and face.

"What Pokémon is that?" Red asked.

"I dunno, but he's cool lookin'!" N commented.

"Agreed."

"Hold it right there!" An officer Jenny stepped into the ring of cars. "Racer, the Pokémon thief, I'm placing you under arrest for thievery!"

The man just laughed and said to his Pokémon, "Use your Flamethrower to get her out of the way."

Officer Jenny rolled to the side and sent out her Arcanine, "Use Thunder Fang!"

"Crush Claw!" Racer called to his Pokémon. The Pokémon clashed in a series of close-ranged attacks.

"Arcanine, hit it with Bulldoze!"

The white Pokémon flew back into the car that the boys were hiding behind. Chills of excitement went up their spines as the car rocked.

"Zangoose, attack back with Revenge!"

Arcanine fell to the ground unconscious.

"This is where we make our getaway! Zangoose, lets bounce!" Racer shouted with triumph.

"Not so fast!" Looker appeared on the scene, holding his hand out in a signal for Racer to stop. "Pangoro, deploy!" A great bear leaped out of its PokéBall. "Pangoro, use Hammer Arm!" Pangoro's elbow slammed into Zangoose's face, causing massive damage and knocking it out.

"Well done, Pangoro, withdraw!" Looker said, "Now, about your arrest." Racer was arrested shortly, his Zangoose and other Pokémon were released.

"They are glad to get away from him, "N commented.

"How can ya' tell?" Red asked. Their hands slapped over their mouths; they had involuntarily exchanged styles of speaking with one another, then they burst out laughing.

"I just can!" N said, smiling, taking from Red's own words.

They traveled from Saffron city to Vermilion, from Vermilion to Pewter, from Pewter to Viridian, and from Viridian to Pallet.

**You know the story from here so I won't bore you going over things we've already discussed, but I hope you've liked reading about N; in the next chapter, we'll cover Red's background. Keep reading!**


	12. Chapter 12: Stories Part 2

** Chapter 12: Stories Part 2**

**Please bear in mind that this chapter will contain a certain amount of blood and gore.**

Not even N knows very much about his best friend. For instance, Red's real name is Liam Edge and he is from an immensely wealthy family. Whenever N asked about Red's parents, house or even his past, Red would remain silent, staring at the ground in horrific nostalgia, for the remainder of the day, so N tried to stay away from the subject. Luckily for the reader, I happen to know the story of Liam Edge, and I will tell it to you presently.

Liam Edge, or Liam Edge III, named after his father and grand-father, was eternally disgusted with his name, had decided to refer to himself as Red, a character from the Pokémon Adventures manga he enjoyed. Of course, he didn't want to disrespect his parent's decision for his name so he kept it mainly to himself.

His overzealously wealthy father had used his money to seduce a pretty woman named Maria into marrying him. And so, accordingly, they had a single heir and named him Liam.

For the most part, Liam was fully confined within the mansion so he had no friends. He didn't see his father much, the latter was always in his office doing, "Important things, "as he called them. His mother was, likewise engaged, being a nurse at the Pokémon Center in the city in which they lived, Saffron.

Now please don't take this the wrong way, Red, who was Liam, really did love both of his parents when he saw them, that just wasn't that often. He remained in his room, enjoying the quiet and the peace of mind. He was never good with people, and didn't enjoy the business parties that his father and mother put on, but attended to make them happy.

While I'm on the subject; Liam Sr. never seemed to smile; at least not around Red, and by that I mean that there was nothing Red could do to please his father. His mother on the other hand was the most nourishing, kind and loving person he knew, not that that is saying much, because Red didn't know too many people, but she _was_ exceptionally kind.

Now, on with the story. Seven year old Liam "Red" Edge sat in his room, dying in the sharp, painful jaws of the ruthless boredom. He moved his toy train back and forth in endless succession across the tracks with one finger. He could hear the façade of cheeriness coming from his father upstairs as he talked to a businessman.

He lay on his stomach, dangling his feet in the air, crossing them and then un-crossing them, repeating the motions over and over again. In his few years of being alive, he had learned to deal with many things. His father, the lack of color around the house, the equally small amount of Pokémon; but the one thing he could never seem to deal with was boredom, his terrible, but frequent friend.

The large window in his room stretched to the floor and was facing the front of the house, so Red could generally see people coming and going. One particular person that he had noticed passing by the front gate more than once seemed vaguely suspicious to him.

The sun was setting, turning the snow white pages of the book Red was reading into coal. He distastefully snapped the book shut and tossed it moodily across the room. He wasn't hungry, so he skipped dinner, but he did find himself more tired than he should have been, considering the small amount of things he had done that day, so he climbed into his bed.

A gentle creak caressed him into awakening, finding him curled in a warm ball beneath his bed sheets. He opened his eyes, light coming from the hallway squeezed itself under the door so he could barely see a shadow pass by his door and move on into places unknown. At first, this didn't concern him, and he almost fell back asleep, until he heard a shout followed by a shriek emanate from his parents room.

Kicking off his sheets and ripping the door open, Red bravely raced down the hall into his parent's room. The room was dark, the only light from the know open door. A tall man stood in front of Red, facing his terrified mother with a bloody knife dripping in his hand. Red's eyes inadvertently looked down to the floor in front of the strange man. The boy could no longer breath as he saw his father's lifeless body covered in blood.

The man glanced behind him and saw the boy, laughing and turning back, he pounced upon Maria, forcing his small blade into her perfect form and ripping it back out again several times, painting red everywhere.

Red couldn't feel the adrenaline rushing through his veins, nor could he smell the fresh blood smothering his body. His eyes shook around inside their sockets confusedly. He couldn't see the tall man's strange green eyes light up once more from a lit match. Empty oil cans were tossed on the floor; it only took a dropping of the single match to ignite the room, flowing through the house like a sea. The man jumps out of the open window and avoids damage, fleeing from his certain victory.

Struggling with sanity, Red's knees buckled to the floor, still staring at the burning corpses of his dead parents. A flame licked his hand, but he couldn't feel it as he watched with terror as the flesh was stripped away from his parent's bodies.

He fell to the floor for reasons he could not discern, and found that he could not breathe through the thick smoke. Just before he passed out, he thought he heard the blaring sirens of a fire truck, the sizzling of a battle between fire and water, and the voice of a man from the open window proclaiming, "We've found a survivor!"

Red's eyes shot open. He was strapped to an uncomfortable bed inside a large, moving vehicle. Red quickly remembered the events of the night, and quickly passed out again. His dreams haunted him with torturous memories.

He awoke again, this time in a hospital. Two doctors stood before him, jumping back as his eyes flashed open. Red said nothing, the same dead eyes lying on his emotionless face. Both of the doctors seem to want to say something, but also seem to be afraid to ask.

"Please tell us what happened, "One of them blurts out a bit more seriously than he had initially intended.

Red didn't reply, although he averted his gaze from the wall and locked eyes with the doctor who had spoken.

"Would you please?" The second doctor chimes in. No words. The next few minutes passed in heated silence.

"Would you please describe the man who killed your parents?" The first says. Red stared daggers at the doctor, sitting up.

"Um, "The second doctor says, Reds eyes switching over to this doctor, "In order to catch the man, we need to know what he looks like…"

"You…, "Red says, finding his words, "Didn't… catch him?"

"N-no, we-"The first started, only to be cut off by Red.

"That's perfect, "Red said to the surprise of the doctors.

"It… it is? Why?" They asked.

"Because this way I can kill him myself, "He said rather intimidatingly for a seven year-old boy. The doctors looked at each other, and back to Red, seeing emotionless pupils in his red eyes.

"Mr. Edge, we hate to interrupt, but you are now orphaned and the heir to the Edge mansion and inheritance, "said the first.

Red didn't seem to hear him as he undressed and pulled the clothes sitting on the counter onto his body.

"And as you _are_ an orphan after all, and you have no living relatives, "The second continued off of the first's thoughts, "We have no choice but to hand you over to the state, "He concluded. Red had slammed the door shut and started racing down the slippery hallway, his pride letting tears finally stream down his eyes.

He sobbed with mixed emotions of regret, fear, sadness, hate and anger, salty water fogging up his vision. He weaved through the traffic of people as the doctors not so nimbly chased after him, yelling words of halting to deaf ears.

Finally losing the two grown men at the entrance to the hospital, he panted and wiped away his tears. He looked up, still breathing heavily, and felt drawn towards a boy with long green hair and a black baseball cap that he had never seen before. He allowed his instincts to take over and crossed the busy street to the sidewalk on the other side.

**Thanks for reading! Sorry this chapter was so short. With the next chapter, we will be continuing the story where we left off in chapter 10, please enjoy! Sayoonara!**


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